Prominent U.S. business lobbies are begging the Trump administration not to impose tariffs on Chinese imports, but some small manufacturers are pushing the other way: Trying to get more products on the proposed list.

Makers of steel wheels, safes, and other products want the U.S. to impose tariffs on goods by their Chinese competitors, which aren't among the products targeted so far. They say the duties the U.S. imposed on steel and aluminum imports raised their costs but didn't affect finished goods made in China and sold here—setting up a potentially damaging Catch-22.

“All we're asking is that the table be leveled and the field balanced so the competition is fair,” said Jeffrey Pizzola, chief operating officer of Americana Development Inc., which employs about 400 people in Ohio, Georgia, and Indiana to make steel wheels for products including lawn and garden equipment, recreational vehicles, and trailers.