Biden Pushes Elusive ‘Buy American’ Goal With New Federal Contract Guidelines

Biden Pushes Elusive ‘Buy American’ Goal With New Federal Contract Guidelines

WASHINGTON (Reuters) — President Joe Biden will take steps on Monday to harness the purchasing power of the United States government, the world's biggest single buyer, to increase domestic manufacturing and create markets for new technologies, a senior administration official said.

Biden will sign an executive order aimed at closing loopholes in existing “Buy American” provisions, which structure the $600 billion in goods and services the federal government buys each year, making any waivers more transparent, and creating a senior White House role to oversee the process.

Increasing U.S. manufacturing, a central tenet of Biden's presidential campaign, has proven a vexing challenge for previous administrations, including that of former President Donald Trump.

Lower wages and weaker environmental standards have triggered the exodus of key manufacturing capabilities to China and other countries in recent decades, including medical equipment, resulting in critical gaps laid bare during the COVID-19 pandemic.

China overtook the United States as the world's top manufacturer in 2010, and was responsible for 28% of global output in 2018, according to United Nations data.

Rebuilding critical supply chains and developing new ones is critical to U.S. growth, trade experts say.

The U.S. trade deficit surged to $68 billion in November, its highest level in 14 years,