LG to raise prices on washers, dryers after Trump tariffs

LG Electronics is planning to raise prices on some of its washer and dryer models in response to President Trump’s decision this week to impose hefty new tariffs on imported washing machines. 

The president on Monday levied tariffs on washers made by LG and Samsung as part of an effort to help U.S. based Whirlpool. 

{mosads}”As a result of the trade situation, we will be initiating pricing actions, which will be sent under separate cover shortly,” Thomas Yoon, an executive at the South Korean manufacturer, told retailers in a memo, according to The Wall Street Journal.

The company will likely raise the published retail prices on some of its laundry appliances by about $50, industry experts said, according to the Journal.

“The penalties were more severe than recommended by the International Trade Commission, and we’re making some adjustments,” an LG spokesman told the Journal.

John Taylor, senior vice president for government relations at LG Electronics USA, said the Trump administration’s “penalties are not justified.”

Tariffs were imposed despite the LG’s plans to build factories and its corporate headquarters in the United States, Taylor said during a Heritage Foundation trade event on Tuesday. 

The tariffs could hamper those plans, he said. 

LG washers run about 20 percent higher in price than Whirlpool brands, Taylor said.

Many congressional lawmakers and trade experts warn that tariffs will raise prices for consumers, cost U.S. jobs and hurt the economy.

“My main concern is that President Trump’s decisions will lead to a flood of Section 201 cases in which U.S. companies ask for tariffs and he increasingly grants it,” said Chad Bown, a trade expert at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Previous presidents have been wary to take action even when recommended by the U.S. International Trade Commission on these types of tariffs. 

Earlier this week, Trump imposed tariffs on imports of residential washing machines and solar panel technology as part of a promise to crack down on trading partners the industry argues hurt U.S. manufacturers such as Whirlpool. 

“After moving their production from overseas back to Clyde, Ohio, Whirlpool has had to fight a series of cases against companies that would rather cheat than compete,” said Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio).

“Sen. [Sherrod] Brown (D) and I fought for Whirlpool’s hardworking Ohio employees earlier this month, and I am pleased to see that much of our recommendation is reflected in today’s remedy,” Portman said. 

For washers, the president approved a safeguard tariff-rate quota for three years starting with a 20 percent rate on the first 1.2 million units.

A tariff of 18 percent will apply in the second year and 16 percent in the final year of action on washers from all countries except Canada. Imports after the first 1.2 million units will face a tariff of 50 percent in the first year and fall to 40 percent in the third year. 

A vice president at Abt. Electronics, an appliance retailer in Glenview, Ill., said he got the memo and noted he didn’t expect the price increases to have a large influence on consumers.

“People will pay for the features they want,” Phil Hannon told the Journal.