Auto Care Association President and CEO Bill Hanvey testified before the U.S. International Trade Commission (USITC) on July 21, 2022, during a three-day-long virtual hearing on the economic impacts of the Section 301 tariffs on U.S. industries. The USITC instituted the factfinding investigation in May and will submit a report to Congress in March 2023.
Hanvey testified that Auto Care Association members have been experiencing many challenges as a result of the Section 301 tariffs since they were first imposed in 2018.
In his testimony, Hanvey stated:
“The economic impact on aftermarket business operations has been devastating. The cash flow impact of financing the tariff is causing severe financial stress. Our members are suffering: many report a price increase of more than 25% and reduced profitability, as they are unable to pass on all tariff-related costs to maintain the same profit margins.
Absorbing these costs places a significant strain on a business’s bottom line, which makes it impossible to expand employment, reinvest in the company, grow or flourish. These costs prevent us from helping Americans from moving forward and the US economy booming.”
Hanvey went on to explain that “with varying levels of inventory costs, members also struggle to accurately track and price inventory. The burdens of the tariffs leave our members having to monitor and track tariff-related issues, from rates and effective dates to exclusions coming and going.”
The Auto Care Association will be submitting additional written comments as part of the investigation. In order to make sure that the Auto Care Association can effectively represent the interest of its member companies and the industry’s interests as part of the investigation, auto care industry businesses are encouraged to share their tariff impact stories through this brief Section 301 member survey by Wed., Aug. 10, 2022.
For the latest industry trade and tariff information, visit https://www.autocare.org/government-relations/current-issues/tariffs-and-trade.
