White House inches closer to decision on auto tariffs

The Commerce Department on Sunday formally gave the White House the results of its investigation into whether tariffs are needed to protect the domestic auto and auto parts industries. The administration gave no hint as to the report’s contents.

Business groups and U.S. trade partners have long feared that the report, originally set for release last year, will be a pretext for creating new tariffs. The report’s recommendations have been kept closely under wraps and it is not clear when the White House will make the document public.