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China news tagged with: U.S. trade (260)

• Chicken Parts Join Menu of U.S.-China Disputes

  

  The Chinese government has announced that it will impose anti-dumping duties on chicken parts from the U.S. From Reuters:

  The Chinese Commerce Ministry’s initial investigation showed that U.S. companies had dumped chicken products into the Chinese market, according to the ministry’s website (www.mofcom.gov.cn).

  The preliminary tariffs were announced a day after Beijing requested a World Trade Organization ruling on European Union duties on shoes made in China in the latest case demonstrating China’s use of the WTO to keep markets open to the exports on which it depends.

  The United States Trade Representative was muted in its response, saying it would consult with U.S. producers as it analyzed China’s move.

  » Read more
  • February 5, 2010 3:08 PM

• Obama Vows ‘Much Tougher’ Stance on US-China Trade

  

  In a question and answer session with Senate Democrats today, President Obama vowed to take a tougher stance on trade with China but said he opposed becoming protectionist. From BBC:

  At a meeting with Senate Democrats, Mr Obama was asked whether the US would cut ties with Beijing over ongoing trade disputes.

  The president said he would continue to make sure that China and other countries lived up to abide by trade agreements, but warned it would be a mistake for the US to become protectionist.

  “The approach that we’re taking is to try to get much tougher about the enforcement of existing rules, putting constant pressure on China and other countries to open up their markets in reciprocal ways,” he said.

  “But what I don’t want to do is for us as a country or as a party, to shy away from the prospects of international competition.”

  Watch the full video of Obama’s meeting via C-SPAN. A question about China is the first one asked:
  

  See also “Currency Dispute Likely to Further Fray U.S.-China Ties” and “Who Needs Whom More?” by Philip Bowring, both from the New York Times.

  » Read more
  • February 3, 2010 10:10 PM

• Chinese Evade U.S. Sanctions on Iran

  

  While an embargo bans companies who sell arms to Iran from conducting business in the U.S., many Chinese companies are skirting the rules to keep the trade routes open. The Wall Street Journal reports:

  A unit of state-owned China Precision Machinery Import-Export Corp., for example, has made nearly 300 illegal shipments to U.S. firms since a ban was imposed on CPMIEC and its affiliates in mid-2006, according to an analysis of shipping records by the Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control, a nonprofit proliferation watchdog.

  A Wall Street Journal review of the records and interviews with officials at some of the American companies indicate that the U.S. firms likely were unaware they were doing business with banned entities, and in many cases were tripped up by altered company names.

  The CPMIEC shipments, worth millions of dollars, include everything from anchors and drilling equipment to automobile parts and toys. In many cases, CPMIEC acted as a shipping intermediary — activity also banned under a 2006 presidential order.

  » Read more
  • January 4, 2010 10:31 PM

• US Says Copyright Piracy In China Still “Unacceptably High”

  

  From AFP:

  Copyright piracy in China remains at “unacceptably high levels,” causing “serious harm” to American businesses, the top US trade official said in an annual report to Congress Tuesday.

  US Trade Representative Ron Kirk said in the mandatory report on China’s compliance with its World Trade Organization accession obligations that Beijing was not taking adequate steps to enforce intellectual property rights laws.

  He said enforcement of China’s copyright protection “remains a significant challenge.”

  » Read more
  • December 22, 2009 6:28 PM

• China Loses Appeal of WTO Ruling on U.S. Books, Films

  

  From Bloomberg:

  World Trade Organization judges rejected a Chinese appeal of a ruling that held its restrictions on the sale of books, films and music from the U.S. illegal.

  The 183-page decision, issued today by the WTO’s Appellate Body in Geneva, may force China to liberalize imports or face possible sanctions.

  It followed an Aug. 12 finding by a WTO panel that China violated free-trade commitments by requiring importers to channel foreign publications and audiovisual products through state-run companies. The panel urged China to allow foreign companies to sell music over the Internet, which would be a boon for Apple Inc., with its iTunes software.

  » Read more
  • December 21, 2009 8:24 PM

• Obama’s Free-Trade Credentials Draw China, APEC Scrutiny (Updated)

  

  Bloomberg reports on Obama’s reception in Asia so far:

  Obama is using the trip to redefine the U.S. relationship with Asia from its biggest debtor and largest single buyer of consumer goods to a more balanced partnership that can help bring down a 10.2 percent jobless rate. To do so, he’ll have to convince China’s President Hu Jintao and other leaders that tariffs on Chinese tires and steel don’t portend the future.

  “The challenge Obama is facing is that the influence of the U.S. is rapidly waning and that he has little credibility” on trade issues, said Marc Faber, who manages about $300 million in Asian shares at Hong Kong-based Marc Faber Ltd. “Obama talked about free trade, but recently the U.S. slapped tariffs on Chinese-made tire imports.”

  Obama needs to show the same commitment to free trade as his predecessor, George W. Bush, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said during a Nov. 13 panel discussion in Singapore. Mexican President Felipe Calderon suggested the U.S. has become more protectionist and less engaged internationally since the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

  Also from Reuters:

  The United States and China sparred over exchange rates at a meeting of Asia Pacific leaders on Sunday, pointing to tricky talks ahead for President Barack Obama when he flies to China to address economic tensions.

  The discord surfaced at a summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Singapore when a reference to “market-oriented exchange rates” was cut from a communique issued at the end of two days of talks. An APEC delegation official said Washington and Beijing could not agree on the wording.

  And from the New York Times:

  The president and his advisers, including Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, are expected to discuss a wide range of issues with China’s leaders, including North Korea, terrorism, the environment, human rights and the fragile state of the global economy.

  The president is expected to praise Beijing for its efforts to stimulate its economy, aiding a global recovery that is now gathering steam. But he is also expected to press Beijing to allow its currency to appreciate and to speed up market reforms and give American companies greater access to its market, which could bolster American exports and help create jobs in the United States.

  The three-day visit to China comes after the president traveled to Japan and Singapore, where on Sunday he attended an Asia-Pacific economic summit meeting. During those stops, President Obama pledged to forge closer ties with Japan, a longtime ally, and in a speech in Tokyo said that he did not fear China’s rise but welcomed it.

  Update: Read more about the economic relationship between China and the United States in light of Obama’s visit:

  - “China, U.S. stuck in mutual reliance” from the Washington Post
  - “Obama looks to reset China ties” from Al Jazeera
  - “China’s Sprint for the Gold” from the New York Times
  - “China’s Role as Lender Alters Obama’s Visit” from the New York Times
  - “While U.S. Economy Struggles, China’s Rises” from NPR
  - “Mutual interests bind Chinese, U.S. economies” from the Los Angeles Times

  » Read more
  • November 15, 2009 7:28 PM

• U.S. Softens Tone To Improve China Relations

  

  From Reuters:

  The United States is going out of its way to build a warmer economic relationship with China and the strategy seems to be paying early dividends.

  In the past two weeks, China has endorsed a U.S.-backed commitment to rebalance the global economy, and impressed some European officials by backing up the pledge with specific steps it planned to take to reconfigure its own economy.

  In addition, what looked like it could have been the start of a trade war when the United States imposed tariffs on Chinese tires fizzled out with minimal drama.

  » Read more
  • October 11, 2009 8:35 PM

• U.S. Groups Eye Second Obama Decision On China Yuan

  

  From Reuters:

  U.S. labor and manufacturing groups urged President Barack Obama on Tuesday to live up to his campaign rhetoric and formally label China a currency manipulator in a Treasury Department report due out next week.

  But Nicholas Lardy, a China economic policy watcher at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, said he’d be “shocked” if Obama took that step now.

  Obama faces his second decision on the currency issue in a semi-annual report due to Congress on October 15.

  During last year’s campaign, Obama criticized then-President George W. Bush for repeatedly failing to label Beijing a currency manipulator, but then made the same decision in his first stab at the issue in April.

  » Read more
  • October 7, 2009 6:25 AM

• China Import Surge Casts Obama Tariff as Phony War

  

  Despite the recent imposition of steep tariffs of Chinese tires by the Obama administration, a trade war between the two countries is unlikely, according to Bloomberg:

  China’s imports, up 68 percent in five years, now amount to almost one-third of gross domestic product, according to World Bank data. The nation’s demand for foreign products is a boon for American companies, which exported $351 billion to China in the past five years.

  U.S. President Barack Obama’s 35 percent tariff on tires from China spurred a Chinese investigation into prices of U.S. poultry and car products. Dangers of further escalation may be mitigated by the increasing benefit China provides the world economy. Poised to surpass Japan as No. 2 in GDP, its purchasing power is a lure to firms seeking new customers.

  Read also an editorial from the Washington Post:

  In the name of protecting jobs in the U.S. tire industry, the president has effectively imposed a tax on tires for every American — and a particularly regressive tax at that, since the impact will fall most heavily on the cheap tires that China makes and that lower-income Americans buy.

  This is not the second coming of the Smoot-Hawley bill, the notorious 1930 tariff act that exacerbated the Great Depression. Mr. Obama acted under authority China itself had acceded to as part of gaining U.S. agreement to its membership in the World Trade Organization. It affects a narrow range of traded goods. And China’s retaliation so far remains within the framework of international trade law. Mr. Obama says that this step will bolster free trade in the long run by showing that the United States intends to enforce trade agreements. That demonstration will, he implies, strengthen public trust in open markets.

  The question is: Exactly what is he doing to advance additional market-opening agreements that are clearly in the U.S. interest, such as pending deals with Colombia, South Korea and Panama?

  » Read more
  • September 17, 2009 11:34 AM

• China to Probe US Auto, Chicken Imports

  

  China is retaliating against Obama’s announcement that the U.S. would impose hefty duties on tires imported from China. From China Daily:

  Just two days after the decision by the United States to levy heavy import tariffs on Chinese tires, the government here has reacted by launching an anti-dumping and anti-subsidies investigation into automotive and chicken exports from the US.

  The Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) Sunday did not label it as retaliation against the tire dispute, but said it acted simply in a response to domestic concerns.

  The probe, which is in line with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, follows complaints from Chinese manufacturers that US-made products entered the nation’s markets with “unfair competition” and harmed domestic industries, said the ministry in a statement.

  MOFCOM added it is still opposed to trade protectionism and committed to working towards global economic recovery.

  See also “US tyre duties spark clash” from the Financial Times.

  » Read more
  • September 13, 2009 8:56 PM

• China Denounces New Tire Tariffs

  

  The New York Times reports on China’s response to President Obama’s decision to impose steep duties on tires imported from China:

  “China is firmly opposed to this measure of serious commercial protectionism by the United States,” the Chinese ministry of commerce said Saturday.

  The sharp and swift reaction, though not necessarily indicative of a serious new clash, amounted to a warning shot just at a time when American officials need China’s help on issues including the global economic recovery and possible additional sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program.

  Few decisions by President Obama have appeared more uncomfortable and fraught with larger considerations than the blandly worded announcement at 9:15 p.m. Friday that he would impose a tariff of 35 percent on Chinese tires for cars and light trucks.

  The Obama Administration today defended its decision in light of China’s response, the LA Times reports.

  For another perspective on the tire case, see this post from lawyer and blogger Scott Lincicome.

  See also “China May Appeal Tire Tariff to WTO” from the Washington Post, and more coverage of this story from Google News.

  » Read more
  • September 12, 2009 8:16 PM

• Obama Slaps Duties on Tire Imports from China

  

  The Obama Administration has imposed steeper duties on imports of tires from China in response to a complaint from labor groups in the U.S., Reuters reports:

  The United Steelworkers union, which represents workers at many U.S. tire production plants, filed a petition earlier this year asking for the protection.

  It said a tripling of tire imports from China to about 46 million in 2008 from about 15 million in 2004 had cost more than 5,000 U.S. tire worker jobs.

  An additional 35 percent duty will be placed for a year on Chinese-made passenger vehicle and light truck tires, the White House said in a statement.

  The new duty will take effect on September 26 and comes in addition to an existing 4 percent duty. It would fall to 30 percent in the second year and 25 percent in the third year, the White House said.

  See also a China Daily report: “Major trade test ahead for Obama with China tire ban.”

  » Read more
  • September 11, 2009 8:59 PM

• The U.S. Climate Change Bill: International Trade Implications & China

  

  On China Law and Policy, Elizabeth Lynch writes a lengthy post, including a podcast interview with Jake Caldwell, director of Policy for Agriculture, Trade & Energy at the Center for American Progress, to help explain implications of the U.S. Climate Change Bill on trade with China:

  This past June, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009 (the “Climate Change Bill”). Far-reaching in its impact on the U.S. economy and particularly detrimental to certain energy-insensitive sectors, debate in the Senate will become increasingly cantankerous as special interests and certain states lobby for protection.

  And while the Bill, through a series of complicated cap-and trade equations and a plethora of subsidies to renewable energy, has the potential to completely alter the domestic market, debate thus far has been about its global impact. With fear that countries like China will not pass legislation to cap their domestic industries’ carbon output, the House added two provisions to protect U.S. industries from companies in countries that are not similarly restrained. Out of a 1,400 page bill, these two provisions have become the center of the debate, some calling these provisions much needed protection and others calling them tariffs.

  But conspicuously absent from these discussions is an analysis of what is really going on here. How exactly do these provisions work? Will they have the intended effect of maintaining the competitiveness of U.S. industries or are they attempts by certain industries to protect their profits? Will these provisions bring countries like China to the table in Copenhagen or will they ultimately produce a tariff war? Can they withstand a challenge under global trade rules?

  On a related topic, read an interview on China Dialogue with Li Lailai, deputy director of the Stockholm Environment Institute, about China’s position on climate change policy and solutions:

  QD: The post-Kyoto climate-change talks have continued on that basis. What suggestions do you have for China’s stance at these talks?

  LL: First, we need to clarify the different responsibilities of developed and developing nations.

  Let’s start with technology transfer: undoubtedly, less populated and more technologically advanced developed nations should be aware that they have written the rules of the game, and thus have a natural advantage. But climate change cannot be tackled unless everybody has the necessary technologies – hence technology transfer is needed. The largest obstacle here is that developed governments maintain that these technologies belong to private companies, and that governments cannot interfere in the market-led exchange of technology. But this is merely an excuse and avoids responsibility. Governments need to take action on climate change, removing intellectual property and other trade barriers, so that developing nations can get the technology to combat climate change – or there will be no joint action to speak of.

  » Read more
  • September 8, 2009 12:02 PM

• China Launches Action at WTO to Keep U.S., EU Markets Open

  

  From Wall Street Journal:

  China launched formal complaints at the World Trade Organization in a bid to take down trade barriers set up by the European Union and U.S., a sign Beijing is fighting more aggressively to keep foreign markets open for its exports.

  The targets of its two complaints are high EU import tariffs on Chinese screws and a U.S. ban on the import of Chinese poultry. Beijing had already announced the suit against the U.S.

  China insists it is countering protectionism and fears about job losses at home in a slumbering global economy. Brussels and Washington say the sanctions are justified by lax business and health rules in China. The EU and the U.S., the two biggest buyers of Chinese goods, combined for $610 billion of imports from China last year.

  » Read more
  • August 1, 2009 6:52 PM

• Gady Epstein: Your Alpaca For A Visa?

  

  From Forbes:

  If the e-mail had come from some other distant country, Wayne England might have dismissed it as a scam. But this one, an inquiry last November about buying his alpacas, was from China, so the 74-year-old Tennessee farmer went for it. “Since all the money’s in China, I thought it wouldn’t hurt,” says England. Thus began an elaborate visa ploy that successfully gained two Chinese men entry into the U.S. last month.

  The pair had posed as livestock farmers interested in buying at least 40 to 50 alpacas so they could get a credible letter of invitation to visit his farm and be approved for visas. Alpacas, popular of late in China for an unrelated reason, are valuable for their fleece and can cost anywhere from thousands to hundreds of thousands of dollars per animal.

  » Read more
  • April 26, 2009 6:56 PM

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