The Trump administration on Wednesday (local time) announced that it is launching trade investigations targeting China, nearly three weeks ahead of a high-stakes summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
In a press release, the US Trade Representative (USTR), Jamieson Greer, announced the “initiation of investigations regarding the acts, policies, and practices of various economies under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 relating to structural excess capacity and production in manufacturing sectors. The investigations will determine whether those acts, policies, and practices are unreasonable or discriminatory and burden or restrict US commerce.”
What is Section 301?
According to the official website, Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act allows the US government to address unfair foreign practices impacting US commerce. The government can use Section 301 to respond to unjustifiable, unreasonable, or discriminatory foreign government practices that burden or restrict US commerce. According to Section 302(b) of the Trade Act, the USTR can self-initiate a probe under Section 301.
Why is China being investigated under Section 301?
A CNBC The report, citing an analyst, said that while the trade investigation has been launched on more than a dozen countries, including India, it clearly focuses on China due to longstanding concerns such as industrial overcapacity and allegations of forced labour.
The analyst further said that since Trump’s negotiating position has been weakened in the last few weeks by the country’s military aggression against Iran, the US needs to establish credible threats on tariffs as it remains Trump’s top pressure tool. However, the report suggests that Beijing was hardly surprised by this recent escalation. “Maximizing leverage before major bilateral meetings seems to be a standard move now,” the analyst added.
The trade investigation comes nearly a month after the US Supreme Court struck down Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, which limited his ability to deploy tariffs at will, thereby giving China leverage ahead of the summit between the two leaders.
Trump uses other tools to push his tariff agenda
Citing Lynn Song, chief economist at ING Bank, the report added that Trump is now using other tools to continue with his tariff agenda, a card that Trump clearly intends to keep available for future negotiations.
Under Section 301 of the Trade Act, the US President is permitted to impose levies on nations that have been found to engage in “unfair trade practices without,” needing congressional approval. Trump has long accused China of such practices and previously used Section 301 during his first term to impose tariffs on Chinese goods.
China’s export demand continues to grow
Despite criticism from its global trading partners, including the US, over its heavy reliance on external demand, China’s export sector is witnessing rapid expansion. In the first two months of 2026, Beijing’s exports jumped 21.8%, compared with a year ago, pushing its trade surplus to a record $213.6 billion.
US-China ties to worsen?
The report suggests that if these additional investigations targeting China’s forced labor practices are launched and the country is named, Beijing will be aggravated and would not like to engage in deal-making with the administration that is less than stable. Previously, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi struck a diplomatic tone during a press briefing on 8 March, saying both sides needed to “create a suitable environment” for the summit and “remove unnecessary disruptions”.
Trump’s China visit
The US President will visit China from 31 March to 2 April for a meeting with his counterpart Xi, marking the first trip by an American president since his last visit in 2017. Negotiators from both sides are expected to meet in Mid-March to lay the groundwork for the leaders’ summit, CNBC reported.
The meeting is expected to produce a few breakthroughs, as both sides appear focused on preserving the stability that has defined bilateral relations since late last year.
