The Trump administration announced on Wednesday (local time) that it was launching trade investigations targeting China, nearly three weeks before a summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
In a press release, US Trade Representative (USTR), Jamieson Greer, announced “the initiation of an investigation into the actions, policies, and practices of various economies under Section 301(b) of the Trade Act of 1974 relating to structural overcapacity and production in manufacturing sectors. The investigation will determine whether these actions, policies, and practices are unreasonable and restrictive or discriminatory against U.S. trade.”
What is Section 301?
According to the official website, Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 allows the US government to address unfair foreign practices affecting US trade. The government can use Section 301 to respond to unjustified, unreasonable, or discriminatory foreign government practices that burden or restrict U.S. commerce. According to § 302 letter b) of the Trade Act, the ÚSTR can initiate an investigation under § 301 itself.
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Why is China being investigated under Section 301?
A CNBC report, citing an analyst, said that while the trade probe has been launched in more than a dozen countries, including India, it is clearly targeting China over long-standing concerns such as industrial overcapacity and allegations of forced labour.
The analyst further said that as Trump’s negotiating position has been weakened by the country’s military aggression against Iran in recent weeks, the US needs to implement credible threats on tariffs as they remain Trump’s main 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 probe comes nearly a month after the US Supreme Court struck down Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs that limited his ability to apply tariffs at will, giving China leverage ahead of a summit between the two leaders.
Trump is using 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 his tariff agenda, a card Trump apparently intends to keep available for future negotiations.
Section 301 of the Trade Act allows the US president to impose tariffs on countries found to be engaging in “unfair trade practices” without needing congressional approval. Trump has long accused China of such practices and earlier in his first term used Section 301 to impose tariffs on Chinese goods.
China’s export demand continues to grow
Despite criticism from its global trading partners, including the US, for its heavy reliance on external demand, China’s export sector is experiencing rapid expansion. In the first two months of 2026, Beijing’s exports jumped 21.8% from a year earlier, pushing its trade surplus to a record $213.6 billion.
Will US-China relations worsen?
The report suggests that if these further investigations into China’s forced labor practices are launched and the country is named, Beijing will be outraged and unwilling to engage in deal-making with a less stable government. Earlier, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi struck a diplomatic tone at a press conference on March 8, saying the two sides needed to “create a suitable environment” for the summit and “remove unnecessary disruptions.”
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Trump’s visit to China
The US president will visit China from March 31 to April 2 to meet with his counterpart Xi Jinping, the first trip by a US 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 yield several breakthroughs as both sides appear focused on maintaining the stability that has defined bilateral relations since late last year.
