U.S. puts tariffs on Chinese solar panels

David Brancaccio: The U.S. believes China is dumping solar panels at below-market prices in America and has hit back with a penalty of 31 percent. That tariff is surprisingly steep and as Marketplace’s Rob Schmitz reports from Beijing, the reaction in China is dismay.

Rob Schmitz: The U.S. decision to slap tariffs of more than 31 percent on Chinese solar panels will undoubtedly prompt a Chinese response, says Meng Xiangang, Vice Director of the China Renewable Energy Society.

Meng Xiangang: If China’s treated unfairly, it’ll probably retaliate.

Meng says this will have a huge impact on the Chinese solar industry. He says the U.S. — and the rest of the world — benefit from cheap Chinese solar panels.

Xiangang: Chinese solar panels help protect the global environment. This tariff hike will raise the price of all solar panels, whether they’re from China or not. This is very irresponsible.

But U.S. solar panel companies applauded the decision, saying that cheap Chinese solar panels have undercut their business for years, leading to lost manufacturing jobs throughout the country.

In Shanghai, I’m Rob Schmitz, for Marketplace.