Page 60 - 2018 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
P. 60
8 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
with China as its airplane, automobile and machinery the Brookings Institution and former official with the U.S.
manufacturers, agriculture businesses and many other Treasury Department, told Xinhua, expecting the two
sectors have multi-billion dollar exports to China every sides to develop specific plans within 2017. He also noted
year,” he said. “I can clearly tell you a trade war will not that a high-quality U.S.-China bilateral investment treaty
take place this year,” said Wei, who was previously China’s would help U.S. export its services to China and build
Vice Commerce Minister.“But we will also stay alert for the a foundation for a better bilateral trading relationship.
possibility next year [in 2018]. The best way is to enhance “The U.S. primarily exports services. It’s hard to export
communication” (Zhong and Ren). services if you cannot invest,”he said. In the service sector,
America’s surplus with China has been ballooning. In
However, disagreements in bilateral trade still exist. the past decade, U.S. service exports to China increased
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced its final 5 times and the service surplus increased to $57 billion
ruling on the third-time countervailing administration in 2016, 40 times of that in 2006. China has agreed to
investigation on Chinese photovoltaic products in July further open up its service sector and expand bilateral
2017. Chinese manufacturers will face a countervailing trade in services with the United States, as the country
duty rate of between 17.14 percent and 18.3 percent. is shifting its economy toward a growth model powered
Soon after, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang urged the by consumption, services and innovation. Given the
United States to loosen its “outdated” restrictions on differences between China and the United States in the
high-tech exports to China so it can tap the vast Chinese size and structure of their services industry, it remains
market and reduce the bilateral trade imbalance. Wang possible for both sides to exploit their own comparative
said that as China upgrades its industries, there is a huge advantages and complement each other, the statement
market for U.S. exports of advanced technologies, key said, adding that “expanding bilateral trade in services
equipment and critical parts to China. “Unfortunately, can also promote balanced trading relations between
American businesses have not had their fair share of the the two sides” (Song, Inaugural).
cake due to outdated U.S. regulations on export control,”
he told a luncheon attended by U.S. Treasury Secretary Then in August, President Trump signed an executive
Steven Mnuchin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and memorandum instructing U.S. Trade Representative
hundreds of Chinese and U.S. business leaders. Wang Robert Lighthizer to find out whether to investigate any
cited China’s import of integrated circuits, which hit $227 of China’s laws, policies, practices or actions that may be
billion in 2016, more than the import of crude oil, iron unreasonable or discriminatory, or may be harming U.S.
ore and primary plastics combined. But only 4 percent of intellectual property and innovation technology. Trump’s
China’s integrated circuit imports came from the U.S.. If move triggered opposition from the Chinese government
the U.S. were to liberalize its export barriers against China and concerns of strained trade relations between the
to the same level applicable to France, the U.S. trade world’s two largest economies. China’s Ministry of
deficit with China would drop by up to 34 percent, Wang Commerce responded that China will take all necessary
said, citing a Carnegie Endowment for International and appropriate measures to protect its commercial
Peace article. The same article claimed that if the United and trade interests if the U.S. government wrongly
States were to liberalize its export barriers against China accuses China over alleged theft of U.S. technology and
to the same level as those applicable to Brazil or France, intellectual property. Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman
the U.S. trade deficit with China would narrow by up to Hua Chunying said, “Given the increasingly converging
24 percent and 34 percent respectively. The demand China-U.S. interests and the close-knit pattern of the two
for high-quality U.S. products and services is growing countries being mutually dependent, there will be no
fast, according to Wang. The U.S.-China Business Council future or winner but only losers in a trade war.” President
predicted that U.S. goods and services exported to China Trump’s signing came at a sensitive time, coinciding with
will double to $369 billion in the coming decade and his tweet that if China helps more on restraining the
rise to $520 billion by 2050. “China’s development and nuclear weapons program of the Democratic People’s
progress is a long-term certainty, which offers the most Republic of Korea, he might think differently about trade
important external environment for foreign businesses to issues (Chen, Trump’s Move).
work with China,”Wang said (Chen and An).
The bilateral trade imbalances between the United
“I don’t think there’s been enough negotiation to have States and China can be solved through more trade and
a lot of concrete results,” David Dollar, a senior fellow at investment rather than trade war, said the Institute of
60
with China as its airplane, automobile and machinery the Brookings Institution and former official with the U.S.
manufacturers, agriculture businesses and many other Treasury Department, told Xinhua, expecting the two
sectors have multi-billion dollar exports to China every sides to develop specific plans within 2017. He also noted
year,” he said. “I can clearly tell you a trade war will not that a high-quality U.S.-China bilateral investment treaty
take place this year,” said Wei, who was previously China’s would help U.S. export its services to China and build
Vice Commerce Minister.“But we will also stay alert for the a foundation for a better bilateral trading relationship.
possibility next year [in 2018]. The best way is to enhance “The U.S. primarily exports services. It’s hard to export
communication” (Zhong and Ren). services if you cannot invest,”he said. In the service sector,
America’s surplus with China has been ballooning. In
However, disagreements in bilateral trade still exist. the past decade, U.S. service exports to China increased
The U.S. Department of Commerce announced its final 5 times and the service surplus increased to $57 billion
ruling on the third-time countervailing administration in 2016, 40 times of that in 2006. China has agreed to
investigation on Chinese photovoltaic products in July further open up its service sector and expand bilateral
2017. Chinese manufacturers will face a countervailing trade in services with the United States, as the country
duty rate of between 17.14 percent and 18.3 percent. is shifting its economy toward a growth model powered
Soon after, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang urged the by consumption, services and innovation. Given the
United States to loosen its “outdated” restrictions on differences between China and the United States in the
high-tech exports to China so it can tap the vast Chinese size and structure of their services industry, it remains
market and reduce the bilateral trade imbalance. Wang possible for both sides to exploit their own comparative
said that as China upgrades its industries, there is a huge advantages and complement each other, the statement
market for U.S. exports of advanced technologies, key said, adding that “expanding bilateral trade in services
equipment and critical parts to China. “Unfortunately, can also promote balanced trading relations between
American businesses have not had their fair share of the the two sides” (Song, Inaugural).
cake due to outdated U.S. regulations on export control,”
he told a luncheon attended by U.S. Treasury Secretary Then in August, President Trump signed an executive
Steven Mnuchin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross and memorandum instructing U.S. Trade Representative
hundreds of Chinese and U.S. business leaders. Wang Robert Lighthizer to find out whether to investigate any
cited China’s import of integrated circuits, which hit $227 of China’s laws, policies, practices or actions that may be
billion in 2016, more than the import of crude oil, iron unreasonable or discriminatory, or may be harming U.S.
ore and primary plastics combined. But only 4 percent of intellectual property and innovation technology. Trump’s
China’s integrated circuit imports came from the U.S.. If move triggered opposition from the Chinese government
the U.S. were to liberalize its export barriers against China and concerns of strained trade relations between the
to the same level applicable to France, the U.S. trade world’s two largest economies. China’s Ministry of
deficit with China would drop by up to 34 percent, Wang Commerce responded that China will take all necessary
said, citing a Carnegie Endowment for International and appropriate measures to protect its commercial
Peace article. The same article claimed that if the United and trade interests if the U.S. government wrongly
States were to liberalize its export barriers against China accuses China over alleged theft of U.S. technology and
to the same level as those applicable to Brazil or France, intellectual property. Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman
the U.S. trade deficit with China would narrow by up to Hua Chunying said, “Given the increasingly converging
24 percent and 34 percent respectively. The demand China-U.S. interests and the close-knit pattern of the two
for high-quality U.S. products and services is growing countries being mutually dependent, there will be no
fast, according to Wang. The U.S.-China Business Council future or winner but only losers in a trade war.” President
predicted that U.S. goods and services exported to China Trump’s signing came at a sensitive time, coinciding with
will double to $369 billion in the coming decade and his tweet that if China helps more on restraining the
rise to $520 billion by 2050. “China’s development and nuclear weapons program of the Democratic People’s
progress is a long-term certainty, which offers the most Republic of Korea, he might think differently about trade
important external environment for foreign businesses to issues (Chen, Trump’s Move).
work with China,”Wang said (Chen and An).
The bilateral trade imbalances between the United
“I don’t think there’s been enough negotiation to have States and China can be solved through more trade and
a lot of concrete results,” David Dollar, a senior fellow at investment rather than trade war, said the Institute of
60
