Juul, The Maker Of E-cigarettes, Makes A Novel Case Against Trump’s Tariffs On Chinese Goods

Source from:  MarketWatch 06/19/2019

ariffs on Chinese goods are bad for your finances, many argue, given the amount of consumer good and parts that are imported from China. But Juul, the controversial e-cigarette maker, has gone one step further than that. It argues they could be bad for your health, too.

A 25% tariff on lithium batteries, which are used in Juul’s e-cigarette portable charging case, will result in a “direct price increase, which is likely to make the product less affordable to the average consumer,” the e-cigarette maker recently told the U.S. Trade Representative’s office.

Juul isn’t the only company worried about lithium battery costs. Lithium batteries are used in everything from renewable energy and portable jump-starters to get stalled cars moving to Apple’s iPhones AAPL, +2.35%  and children’s toys.

But Juul has a novel argument. “Making Juul’s product cost-prohibitive for such consumers may, in turn, lead them to revert to the use of combustible tobacco products, which may increase the costs of health care to those consumers as well as US health insurers,” the company’s letter added.

The company is pleading for an exemption President Donald Trump’s tariffs. Trump is threatening another round of 25% tariffs for approximately $300 billion in goods, including lithium batteries. That’s in addition to the 25% tariffs imposed on Chinese imports last year.  Enditem