US Chamber of Commerce: Trump administration's trade approach hurts American businesses

The Trump administration's trade policy is creating a great uncertainty and hurting American businesses, Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the US Chamber of Commerce, said on Monday, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Key quotes

"We have reminded them that a tariff is nothing more than a tax, and it is not paid by the exporting country -- it is paid by the American people.

The growing list of tariffs proposed or imposed by our government, as well as the continued uncertainty over the future of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), is already taking a toll on businesses.

If these actions continue, our businesses will lose customers, workers will lose jobs, and American consumers will lose family income through higher taxes and higher prices.

Studies show that a combined 760,000 jobs could be lost from the tariffs already enacted as well as those being considered on autos and auto parts.

The administration's trade approach runs the risk of erasing the recent economic gains it worked so hard to secure through tax and regulatory relief without even solving the underlying problems.