Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • Sustainable Plastics
  • Rubber News
Subscribe
  • Login
  • Register
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Processor News
    • Suppliers
    • More News
    • Digital Edition
    • End Markets
    • Special Reports
    • Newsletters
    • Resin pricing news
    • Videos
    • Injection Molding
    • Blow Molding
    • Film & Sheet
    • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
    • Rotomolding
    • Thermoforming
    • Recycling
    • Machinery
    • Materials
    • Molds/Tooling
    • Product news
    • Design
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Sustainability
    • Public Policy
    • Material Insights Videos
    • Numbers that Matter
    • Automotive
    • Packaging
    • Medical
    • Consumer Products
    • Construction
    • CEO Issue
    • Diversity
    • Best Places to Work
      • 2022 winners
    • Processor of the Year
    • Rising Stars
    • Women Breaking the Mold
  • Opinion
    • The Plastics Blog
    • Kickstart
    • One Good Resin
    • BRICS and Plastics
    • All Things Data
    • Viewpoint
    • From Pillar to Post
    • Perspective
    • Mailbag
    • Fake Plastic Trees
  • Shop Floor
    • Blending
    • Compounding
    • Drying
    • Injection Molding
    • Purging
    • Robotics
    • Size Reduction
    • Structural Foam
    • Tooling
    • Training
  • Events
    • K Show Livestream
    • Plastics News Events
    • Industry Events
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Livestreams/Webinars
    • Editorial Livestreams
    • Ask the Expert
    • Plastics News Events Library
    • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Plastics News Executive Forum
    • Injection Molding & Design Expo
    • Plastics News Caps & Closures
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
    • Plastics in Automotive
    • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
    • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
    • Polymer Points Live
    • Numbers that Matter Live
    • Plastics in Politics Live
    • Sustainable Plastics Live
    • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
    • Plastics in Healthcare Library
    • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
  • Resin Prices
    • All Resins
    • Commodity TPs
    • High Temp TPs
    • ETPs
    • Thermosets
    • Recycled Plastics
    • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
    • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
    • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
    • Historic Thermosets
    • Historic Recycled Plastics
  • Rankings & Data
    • Injection Molders
    • Blow Molders
    • Film Sheet
    • Thermoformers
    • Pipe Profile Tubing
    • Rotomolders
    • Mold/Toolmakers
    • LSR Processors
    • Recyclers
    • Compounders - List
    • Association - List
    • Plastic Lumber - List
    • All
  • Directory
  • Custom
    • Sponsored Content
    • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
    • Conair Sponsored Content
    • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
    • ENGEL Sponsored Content
    • White Papers
    • Classifieds
    • Place an Ad
    • Sign up for Early Classified
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. News
January 12, 2017 01:00 AM

Carteaux: Trump 'more business friendly,' but also raises trade policy questions

Steve Toloken
Assistant Managing Editor
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Print
    SPI
    Carteaux

    President-elect Donald Trump's policies should generally bring a lot of opportunities for plastics companies, but the industry also needs to try to block Trump's stated plans to “unwind” trade agreements, according to the head of the U.S. plastic sector's largest trade association.

    In a Jan. 11 industry briefing, the head of the Washington-based Plastics Industry Association, Bill Carteaux, said the Trump administration has a large potential upside for manufacturers, particularly in tax and regulatory policy.

    But Carteaux also noted concern over Trump's statements calling for big changes in trade policy, saying that the plastics industry currently has a $7.1 billion trade surplus and benefits from trade deals.

    “We will continue to work on tax reform with items that benefit the industry, like enhancing the R&D tax credit we helped make permanent at the end of 2015, at the same time fighting a rear-guard action on trade issues, like doing our best to keep the White House from unwinding NAFTA or other things,” Carteaux said.

    “The outlook is positive but it's not without risks,” he said.

    Carteaux spoke in a briefing to release the association's latest economic study of the U.S. plastics industry, which presented a generally positive outlook for what is the third-largest manufacturing sector in the U.S., after the oil and gas extraction and automobiles. Carteaux's comments are not the first from the petrochemical industry to broadly support trade, in reaction to the president-elect.

    In a statement after the election, the American Chemistry Council said trade would be very important to “unlock potential” from $175 billion in new shale gas-related investments in the U.S. planned by the chemical industry, which is one of the country's largest exporting industries.

    As well, the German plastics machinery association VDMA put out an unusual statement in late November praising trade deals and decrying protectionism, which the association said was in reaction to President-elect Trump's comments.

    In broader terms, though, Carteaux said the manufacturing industry is hearing “very positive things” in Washington.

    “I think from an overarching standpoint, from all indications, is this will be a much more business friendly administration,” he said. “One of the single biggest areas we should see some immediate relief is from some of the regulations that have stifled our industry and curtailed some of the growth.”

    Key regulatory issues

    In a statement distributed after the meeting, the association highlighted key regulatory areas it said it presented to Trump transition officials.

    They include implementing revisions to the Toxic Substances Control Act passed into law last year, and reviewing a variety of new rules, including for overtime, workplace safety reporting requirements, lockout/tagout machine guarding and ongoing EPA Clean Power Plant and Clean Water rulemakings.

    “We have some things currently pending in some of the agencies,” he said. “We have brought those forward as well and hope those will be rolled back.”

    Carteaux's comments come as lobbyists in Washington expect more focus on manufacturing, whether it's from the president-elect's “name and shame” tweets against specific companies and their overseas investments, or from the nomination of Wilbur Ross, financier and current chairman of plastics distribution firm Nexeo Solutions, as the new Commerce Secretary.

    During a Jan. 11 panel discussion on manufacturing policy sponsored by Frost & Sullivan's Manufacturing Leadership Council, executives including Jerry Jasinowski, former president of the National Association of Manufacturers, said spending on technology and workforce development could encourage industrial growth that is already underway.

    John Bernaden, co-founder of the Smart Leadership Manufacturing Coalition and former executive at Rockwell Automation, advocated creating low-interest loan financing to help small and mid-sized companies invest in “smart manufacturing” technologies.

    From a policy perspective, the panelists generally urged the Trump administration to continue funding a series of manufacturing research institutes launched by the Obama government.

    And several panelists argued that the Trump government is not likely to broadly apply tariffs on imports, but instead will use them as leverage in negotiations.

    Ross and another Trump appointee, economist Peter Navarro, wrote a policy paper for Trump's campaign in September advocating a tougher line on trade, including reining in what they call mercantilist policies of China.

    That paper said that half of the U.S. trade deficit comes from Canada, China, Germany, Japan, Mexico and South Korea, and said that improved trade balances are possible through “tough, smart negotiations.”

    Jasinowski predicted there will be more focus on border taxes.

    “The tax debate will move somewhat more toward border taxes, and that's going to cause that discussion to interface with the tariff discussion,” he said.

    The report from the plastics association argued in part that the plastics sector “has been less affected by trends in automation and globalization than its counterparts” in manufacturing but also said that “the realities of mechanization and globalization have forever changed the way that America's Blue Collar Workers relate to the economy.

    “It would be difficult, not to mention counterproductive, to turn back the clock on the American economy,” the report said, advocating more investment in education and industries that are still in demand, like plastics.

    “Supporting innovation and growth in plastics should be a key part of any effort, locally or nationally, to find good work for the people and communities left behind by economic and operational trends well beyond their, or anyone else's, control,” the report said.

    Carteaux told the webinar that business groups in Washington expect a return to the 1980s in relations between government and business.

    “I've talked to a number of people since the election and they feel like we're going to get back into the 1980s when it comes to how things are governed from a business perspective in Washington D.C. over the next couple of years,” Carteaux said.

    Plastics News Editor Don Loepp contributed to this report.

    RECOMMENDED FOR YOU
    New owners plan growth across US for medical molder Seaway
    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you'd like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at [email protected]

    Most Popular
    1
    Rhode Island kills chemical recycling bill, ACC cites 'misinformation'
    2
    Invista upgrading nylon 6/6 production in South Carolina
    3
    Canada moves to ban single-use plastics, limit chasing arrows symbol
    4
    Rotomolder Centro invests $6M in new Iowa facility
    5
    Peek behind the data shows how top injection molders grew in 2021
    SIGN UP FOR TO RECEIVE THESE EMAILS AND ENEWSLETTERS
    EMAIL ADDRESS

    Please enter a valid email address.

    Please enter your email address.

    Please verify captcha.

    Please select at least one newsletter to subscribe.

    Get our newsletters

    Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge.

    Subscribe today

    Subscribe to Plastics News

    Subscribe now
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram

    Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.

    Contact Us

    1155 Gratiot Avenue
    Detroit MI 48207-2997

    Customer Service:
    877-320-1723

    Resources
    • About
    • Staff
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Media Kit
    • Data Store
    • Digital Edition
    • Custom Content
    • People
    • Contact
    • Careers
    • Sitemap
    Related Crain Publications
    • Sustainable Plastics
    • Rubber News
    • Urethanes Technology
    • European Rubber Journal
    • Tire Business
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Copyright © 1996-2022. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Processor News
        • Injection Molding
        • Blow Molding
        • Film & Sheet
        • Pipe/Profile/Tubing
        • Rotomolding
        • Thermoforming
        • Recycling
      • Suppliers
        • Machinery
        • Materials
        • Molds/Tooling
        • Product news
        • Design
      • More News
        • Mergers & Acquisitions
        • Sustainability
        • Public Policy
        • Material Insights Videos
        • Numbers that Matter
      • Digital Edition
      • End Markets
        • Automotive
        • Packaging
        • Medical
        • Consumer Products
        • Construction
      • Special Reports
        • CEO Issue
        • Diversity
        • Best Places to Work
          • 2022 winners
        • Processor of the Year
        • Rising Stars
        • Women Breaking the Mold
      • Newsletters
      • Resin pricing news
      • Videos
    • Opinion
      • The Plastics Blog
      • Kickstart
      • One Good Resin
      • BRICS and Plastics
      • All Things Data
      • Viewpoint
      • From Pillar to Post
      • Perspective
      • Mailbag
      • Fake Plastic Trees
    • Shop Floor
      • Blending
      • Compounding
      • Drying
      • Injection Molding
      • Purging
      • Robotics
      • Size Reduction
      • Structural Foam
      • Tooling
      • Training
    • Events
      • K Show Livestream
      • Plastics News Events
        • Plastics News Executive Forum
        • Injection Molding & Design Expo
        • Plastics News Caps & Closures
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum
        • Plastics in Automotive
      • Industry Events
      • Injection Molding & Design Expo
      • Livestreams/Webinars
        • Reuters Responsible Business Europe 2022
        • Reifenhäuser Technologies Livestreams
      • Editorial Livestreams
        • Polymer Points Live
        • Numbers that Matter Live
        • Plastics in Politics Live
        • Sustainable Plastics Live
      • Ask the Expert
      • Plastics News Events Library
        • Plastics Caps & Closures Library
        • Plastics in Healthcare Library
        • Women Breaking the Mold Networking Forum Library
      • Processor of the Year submissions
    • Resin Prices
      • All Resins
      • Commodity TPs
        • Historic Commodity Thermoplastics
      • High Temp TPs
        • Historic High Temp Thermoplastics
      • ETPs
        • Historic Engineering Thermoplastics
      • Thermosets
        • Historic Thermosets
      • Recycled Plastics
        • Historic Recycled Plastics
    • Rankings & Data
      • Injection Molders
      • Blow Molders
      • Film Sheet
      • Thermoformers
      • Pipe Profile Tubing
      • Rotomolders
      • Mold/Toolmakers
      • LSR Processors
      • Recyclers
      • Compounders - List
      • Association - List
      • Plastic Lumber - List
      • All
    • Directory
    • Custom
      • Sponsored Content
      • LS Mtron Sponsored Content
      • Conair Sponsored Content
      • KraussMaffei Sponsored Content
      • ENGEL Sponsored Content
      • White Papers
      • Classifieds
        • Place an Ad
        • Sign up for Early Classified