Daily US Times: The US-Chinese trade war is not going away under President Joe Biden. Economists say, the US president won’t confront China with trade pressure right away, because he wants to focus on the coronavirus pandemic and the economy. But he looks set to renew pressure over technology and trade grievances that prompted President Donald Trump to hike tariffs on Chinese imports in 2017.
Economists say negotiators might tone down Donald Trump’s focus on narrowing China’s multibillion-dollar trade surplus with the US and push harder to open its state-dominated economy, which matters more in the long run. But no abrupt tariff cuts or other big changes are expected in Biden’s presidency.
Louis Kuijs of Oxford Economics said: “I think Biden will focus more on trying to extract structural reforms”
“It’s going to take some time before we get any shift or explicit announcements,” the economist said.
President Biden is evaluating tariffs on Chinese goods and wants to coordinate future steps with allies, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. She gave no indication of possible trade pressure.
Psaki said: “The president is committed to stopping China’s economic abuses.”
Zhao Lijian, A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, appealed to Washington to learn from Trump’s “erroneous policies” and adopt a “constructive attitude” but gave no indication of possible changes by Beijing.
He said on Tuesday: “Cooperation is the only correct choice for both sides.”
Donald Trump acted on complaints that are shared by Europe and other traders, but the US has little to show for its bruising war.
It brought Chinese President Xi Jinping’s government to the bargaining table but roiled global trade, raised consumer prices and wiped out jobs.
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