Latest news on China-U.S. Trade War

It has been nearly 10 months since the start of the Sino-US trade war, with growing disputes and a growing negative impact on the global economy.

Read our previous posts: U.S. – China War explained

Recently, UNCTAD released a new study entitled “Key Statistics and Trends in Trade Policy 2018“, examining the impact of the Sino-US trade war. The report emphasizes that the imposition of high bilateral tariffs has had little effect on helping domestic companies in their respective markets.

Recent Developments

Pamela Coke-Hamilton, head of international trade at UNCTAD, said that due to the size of the economy in the United States and China, the tariffs imposed by the two countries will inevitably have a major impact on international trade.

Both sides were earlier in the stage of a 90-day tariff truce, which began on Dec. 1 at the sidelines of the G20 summit in Buenos Aires. Now they have been moving into a new round of high-level economic and trade consultations in Beijing.

With only half a month left in the trade “close truce” period on March 1, the task is quite urgent and significant for both parties who are trying to end the trade conflict through dialogue.

Liu He, China’s Vice-Premier
Robert Lighthizer, US Trade Representative
Steven Mnuchin, Treasury Secretary

New Upcoming Talks

The two-day talks are led by Liu He, Chinese Vice-Premier and also a member of the political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, and US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, with the participation of dozens of senior officials from both governments.

The focus of the two-day negotiation is to develop a general framework for a trade agreement so that the leaders of the two countries can finally conclude a deal.

On basis of the recent consultation in Washington, the two sides will have further discussion on issues of common concern, from which positive outcomes are expected. However, the essential differences between China and the United States on some fundamental issues still exist.

Despite the fact that the Trump administration is under the pressure of campaigning for re-election next year and have a desire to reach an agreement, reaching a comprehensive and fundamental agreement could only become possible under certain conditions.

Viewpoints from experts

US President Trump said two days before the trade talk that he would consider delaying the deadline for Sino-US economic and trade negotiations. Some US analysts expressed their expectation for extending the consultation period.

Liu Zunyi, former president of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, published a book entitled “Path to common good: The China-U.S. Trade War and Future Economic Relations “, hoping to let everyone understand that neither of the two sides sees its relationship with the other as a zero-sum game.
Professor Liu has been optimistic in predicting that the Sino-US trade war is likely to end in March.Need advice on finding the best strategy for your company in China? Get in touch with our team for a consultation and follow us on social media to receive the latest news

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