U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Saturday that future U.S.-China talks will be based on top Biden administration officials who say Beijing’s economic model and trade practices put American businesses and workers at an unfair competitive disadvantage. He said he would pursue the complaint.
“China is concerned about the impact of China’s industrial strategy on the United States, and how concerned we are about the potential for exports to flood the Chinese market and make it difficult for American companies to compete,” Yellen told reporters after her speech. I think I understand what’s going on.” Travel to China.
“This problem is not going to be solved in a day or a month, but I think it’s sending a message that this is an important issue to us,” she said.
A US statement released after Yellen and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng held two days of extended talks in the southern city of Guangzhou said the two countries had “intensive exchanges of views” on more balanced economic growth. He plans to do so. They also agreed to start exchanges on anti-money laundering measures. It is not currently clear when or where the talks will take place.
Yellen, who arrived late in Beijing after starting a five-day visit to one of China’s major industrial and export hubs, said the meeting would allow her to listen to each other’s views and address the issue of overcapacity in China’s manufacturing industry. He said a system would be established to address U.S. concerns.
The two countries agreed to discuss a wide range of issues, including the balanced growth of the U.S., Chinese and global economies, as well as cooperation on financial stability, sustainable finance and anti-money laundering, China’s official Xinhua News Agency said.
Xinhua News Agency reported that China had fully addressed the issue of production capacity, but the report did not provide details. China also expressed serious concerns about U.S. trade and economic policies that restrict China, the agency said.
Subsidies and other policy support from the Chinese government have encouraged Chinese solar panel makers and EV makers to invest in factories and build far more production capacity than the domestic market can absorb.
Large-scale production has reduced costs and sparked a price war on green technologies that benefits consumers and efforts to reduce global dependence on fossil fuels. But Western governments worry that their production capacity could flood the market with low-cost exports, threatening jobs in the United States and Europe.
“This will be critical to our bilateral relations going forward, and to China’s relations with other important countries. And this will be crucial for our relationship going forward, and for China to continue to listen to each other and move forward into the future.” “It would provide a systematic way to see if we can find a way to avoid conflict,” Yellen told reporters.
The exchange on balanced growth and money laundering will be held under the framework of the existing Economic and Financial Working Group, which was established after Yellen met with He in July.
Yellen spoke positively of joint efforts to address U.S. concerns about Chinese companies selling goods to Russia in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
“We believe there is more work to do, but we see this as an area where we have agreed to work together, and we are already making meaningful progress,” she said.
Previous state media reports about her visit characterized U.S. concerns over overcapacity as a possible pretext for tariffs. In a commentary published Friday night, Xinhua News Agency said that while Yellen’s visit is a good sign that the world’s two largest economies are maintaining communication, “China’s overcapacity in the clean energy sector” There is a feeling that bringing this up is creating an excuse to develop more protectionism.” This is a policy designed to protect American companies. ”
Yellen told reporters during a refueling stop in Alaska on her way to China that the U.S. “intends to eliminate tariffs” to counter China’s heavily subsidized production of green energy products. No,” he said.
The United States has sought to divest from certain Chinese technologies through legislation and executive orders in order to increase domestic manufacturing capacity. The White House and many members of Congress view this action as important to maintaining national security.
The $280 billion CHIPS and Science Act, passed in 2022, aims to boost the semiconductor industry and scientific research to create more high-tech jobs in the U.S. and increase competitiveness with China. . Additionally, in August last year, US President Joe Biden signed an executive order to block and regulate US-based high-tech investments in China.
Yellen will hold meetings with senior officials and economists in Beijing on Sunday and Monday.
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Mr. Moritsugu reported from Beijing.
