U.S. slaps steep tariffs on imported washers, solar panels

the children, think of the children

a reply to: Nyiah
We bought the Whirlpool Cabrio Washer and Dr yer when we moved into this house two years ago. Actually first I only bought the washer, because my pops gave us a used old dryer that was working. Plus Best Buy was not giving any bundle price or discount for buying them both at the same time, so I figured I'll just buy the match when the dryer craps out. The following year it crapped out, we went back to Best buy and bought the matching dryer.

I must say, they are the easiest laundry appliances I ever used, even the older kids does him and his bro's laundry from time to time because the touch screen makes things easy. No need to determine the load size, the appliance has sensors that does it for us. The dryer even has a sensors to determine when stuff is dry enough. Timed dry is an option, but we just let the dryer figure it out.

Easiest and quietest machines we have had. Very low energy usage as well. I considered buying the Samsung or LG models, but they cost more for the touch screen versions, and were not made in America. 26 months in for the washer, 13 months on the dryer. No issues what so ever. We got the 5 year service plans from Best Buy on both of them obviously. The washer has its own cycle for cleaning itself, which we use every other month or so as the manual suggests to keep it in good order.

Never been more satisfied with a pair of appliances.
With five young kids we do laundry quite frequently. Our clothes always come out nice and clean. I use pods and always use the pre-soak setting.

I think some manufactures were given advance notice of this new tariff. Whirlpool is headquartered in the United States, but announced 2 weeks ago that it was relocating a wash machine assembly plant back to the USA, from Mexico. Probably to avoid being slapped with the import tariff.

President Trump WINS AGAIN for AMERICANS!

a reply to: carewemust
They have nine plants in USA, and five in Mexico. Perhaps one of the shuttered plants was for a specific brand of appliance in that market?

Remember they are a global company that manufactures on most continents for many markets. Either way, this helps domestic production compete against subsidized foreign production, which tend to dump mass produced cheaper quality to our own markets. Let them keep that crap over there.

Do I like trump? No I do not.

But this is an understandable move - he's actually doing america a favour.

Why import something valuable when you can produce on your own yard. If USA kept importing solar panels it would fall behind in important technology and become self reliant on foreign market leaders. In the event of a #storm USA use their home made solar panels all the while advancing the tech and manufacturing techniques themselves.

Making their infrastructure more self reliant.

Smart.move, he's actually encouraging renewable energy development in USA... not any different from EU taxes on foreign items to promote trade inside the EU.

Ok..

Since most of the solar panels we use are made in the US that isn't much of a big deal. China makes up 17% of our overall solar market. Most of it is the US and the world's top producer is actually Germany, but since China moved production to the EU and other places in Southeast Asia the targeted efforts to stop China from undercutting US companies was essentially dead. So a tariff on solar panels being imported from anywhere is being imposed.

Donald Trump isn't doing this because he hates alternative energy, but because he's trying to protect alternative energy manufacturing in the US.

a reply to: worldstarcountry

I bought a set of the Cabrio Platinum about 5 years ago and they are still going strong. No problems at all and still very quiet. The basket sizes are huge and I especially like the dryer, because even with a comforter for a king size bed, it gets dry in one cycle.

Wait! So where are all the ppl who usually cry PRoTecTionIsT!!
commies, anti capitalist when Burnie said hay!.. let's do this.

a reply to: worldstarcountry

tariffs on imported washers

please ATS - tell me i was not the only one who thought - why tarriffs on :

a reply to: SkeptiSchism

I bet you Trump just thought of taxing 3d printed imports.

I don't see the small picture blossoming unless steve jobs returns and revoltionises the printing industry as cool

But i return to my first point

a reply to: ignorant_ape

You're not...The mechanic in me freaked out for about 1/16 of a second.

a reply to: worldstarcountry

And here we go.

This is pretty blatant market rigging if you ask me. At present, American consumers have the choice between buying reliable components for their solar systems from abroad, or relying on shoddily built variants on the same equipment, from within their own country. Being forced to spend good money on bad equipment, or incur an extra cost, will induce some people not to go solar at all, even if in the long run, it would be better for them financially. It will literally prevent some people making decisions which could have positive impacts on their lives moving forward.

Meanwhile, you have the absurd notion that American equipment of the same sort, will improve in quality, the more people are forced to buy American or do without. The chances of this actually working out this way are slim to none, and even if there is an improvement in American produced solar gear, it will not come on stream quickly enough, or without increases in cost, once again, putting a potentially money saving technology, outside the reach of those who actually NEED that technology in their lives.

And why would any pro-enterprise person want to do that?

If you ask me, one of the reasons that is worth looking into, has to do largely with Trumps bizarre insistence on renewing the coal industry, despite the fact that using fossil products to produce power is about as forward thinking as a stone club. If he makes it more difficult for people who want solar panels, to buy effective equipment, this will have a reduction effect on the number of people defying the power of the energy barons, and increase the amount of reliance on old world power production methods, or at least stem the flow of people away from outmoded power production methods, to things like solar.

These moves simply cannot be justifiable in this period of human history. Every tonne of coal that remains below ground, every single second that someone is NOT using grid derived energy, accepting either the lie of safe nuclear power, or the outrageous swindle that is choking the atmosphere with coal dust in exchange for the ability to run their homes, is a POSITIVE for the people living now, AND the people of the future. Restarting a defunct coal industry on the back of taxing the hell out of ANY method of renewable energy collection, regardless of where its components are made, is not justifiable for ANY reason, leave alone either the stated reasons, or the ones which more likely informed Trumps decision making on this matter.

originally posted by: ISeekTruth101


Why import something valuable when you can produce on your own yard. If USA kept importing solar panels it would fall behind in important technology and become self reliant on foreign market leaders. In the event of a #storm USA use their home made solar panels all the while advancing the tech and manufacturing techniques themselves.

That is two super relevant and often overlooked factors.

1)
If you rely on others to manufacture stuff for you, you eventually end up losing the skills and the ability to do it yourself, and you become completely dependent on others. You eventually end up lacking the skilled workforce you would need.

2)
If you rely on others to manufacture stuff for you, you stop inventing and innovating in that field, and eventually you fall so much behind, that even if you had the skilled workers you needed, you would not have the technology.


Cheaper products come at price.

SLAPS TARIFFS ON IMPORT SOLAR PANELS.

Trying to get the public to buy AMERICAN. American renewable energy companies need to be encouraged to make better products.

However I do not approve of shoehorning US consumers to buy low quality garbage instead of buying what is effective even if it unfortunately made in CommieChina.

Just one questing Is this something Trump him self helped push through ?
If so then I finly can say this guy is becoming the best we have had from Regon .
Ps i also think Clinton did ok as well wile she may be carp now when she arn the white house then she did good .
( o you dont think bill ran it do you ? he was bussie getting his tuba polished lol

go ahead decide you want the person because they are a dem or republic me ill stick with wanting a guy who does the best job they can what his relgian is ( dem- rep is not important )

originally posted by: seasonal
Washers, good. Want to sell'em here make'em here. I would also like to see the same for fridges/stoves.

Just curious, how much are you willing to pay for an American made washer, refrigerator and range? There are only a few brands still 100%* made here and they are not cheap by any means.



*where the parts/subcomponents are also not made overseas

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus
my brand new Whirlpool washer and dryer were about $400 a piece. Thats not bad at all. The comparable LG and Samsungs were about $100 more before the tariffs.
Domestic fabricators are getting more sensible in their pricing.

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus

originally posted by: seasonal
Washers, good. Want to sell'em here make'em here. I would also like to see the same for fridges/stoves.

Just curious, how much are you willing to pay for an American made washer, refrigerator and range? There are only a few brands still 100%* made here and they are not cheap by any means.



*where the parts/subcomponents are also not made overseas

I think the real question is how much should we be paying for 3rd world labor to build these. The cost of foreign made is the same if not more than domestic.

And let's not get ahead of ourselves on the cost. We will have to see how this all works out.

originally posted by: seasonal
The cost of foreign made is the same if not more than domestic.

If that were actually true then it wouldn't be made overseas.

And let's not get ahead of ourselves on the cost. We will have to see how this all works out.

How does it 'work out' where domestic appliance manufacturing costs are lower than those in say China?

a reply to: AugustusMasonicus
Hey come on man, I know you have seen the appliance sections a Lowes Home Depot or Best Buy. The prices are quite close in fact, sometimes cheaper domestically as I said in my example. The reason they make them overseas is because the profit margin or the company is higher.

Seriously if you have not been recently, check it out. You may be surprised.