House, Senate Trade Leaders Tear Into Chinese Policies as China Summit Continues
The Chinese government continues to jeopardize completion of an Information Technology Agreement expansion pact by excluding critical products from tariff exemption and demanding inappropriately long phase-outs for products its willing to concede, said Senate Finance and House Ways and Means Committee leadership in a July 8 letter lambasting China on a number of trade fronts. The letter coincides with the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) currently underway in Beijing. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman urged China to broaden its concessions as he prepared to travel to Beijing for the summit (see 14070801). The letter was sent to several high-ranking Obama administration officials, including Froman.
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The lawmakers called for progress in the negotiations during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) convention in November, echoing a call made by Froman the day before. “Expansion of the scope of coverage of this agreement would create substantial economic opportunities for both the United States and China,” said the letter, endorsed by House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp, R-Mich., ranking member Sandy Levin, D-Mich., Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and ranking member Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. “China's leadership at APEC presents an important opportunity for it to reverse course and demonstrate to the world its commitment to liberalization and capacity to shepherd an ambitious agreement to successful conclusion.” President Barack Obama in a July 8 statement also urged both sides to come to agreement on a number of trade issues during the APEC summit (here).
But the Chinese government is severely lacking in its efforts to incorporate fair competition principles in its domestic policies, said the lawmakers. “China’s outdated economic model is dominated by state-owned enterprises (SOEs), trade-distorting subsidies, forced localization, and economic protectionism including through the misuse of competition policy and by closing off its domestic internet marketplace through regulatory and technical measures,” said the lawmakers, adding that intellectual property rights violations and unfair nontariff barriers remain rampant in the country. “Unfortunately, it appears that this model is becoming even more entrenched as China continues to forego opportunities for reform.”