On May 31, 2017, Whirlpool Corporation filed a petition under Sections 201-202 of the Trade Act of 1974, asking the U.S. International Trade Commission to declare that a surge of large residential washer imports from Samsung and LG was "seriously injuring" American manufacturers. The ITC agreed — unanimously. President Trump signed a proclamation in January 2018 imposing a 20% tariff on the first 1.2 million imported washers per year, jumping to 50% on units above that quota, with an additional 50% on imported parts above 50,000 units. The mechanism is a Section 201 global safeguard: unlike antidumping duties targeting specific countries, it hits every exporting nation simultaneously, giving the domestic petitioner a price umbrella over the entire market.
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