US tariffs review of over US$300 billion worth of Chinese imports almost done, says top trade envoy
- Biden administration ‘taking a serious look’ at existing tools to deal effectively with Beijing’s policies causing ‘dependencies and vulnerabilities’
- US lawmakers also raise questions about withdrawal of Trump-era demands on digital trade rules, fearing reversal means victory for China
Washington’s top trade envoy assured sceptical Republican lawmakers on Tuesday that the long-awaited results of the Biden administration’s review of US tariffs on more than US$300 billion worth of Chinese imports were “very close to the conclusion”.
“We are making progress and it is my belief that we are very close to the conclusion of this review,” Tai said when asked by Republican congressman Jason Smith of Missouri, the committee’s chairman, if she could commit to releasing the results by May 3.
Tai said the Biden administration was “taking a serious look” at the “existing tools” to deal effectively with China’s policies causing “dependencies and vulnerabilities in multiple sectors, harming American workers and businesses and creating real risks for our supply chains”.
Reiterating that the US sought competition rather than conflict with China, Tai told the lawmakers she was closely reviewing a plea from five US unions to investigate Beijing’s allegedly unfair acts, policies and practices in the critical maritime, logistics and shipbuilding sector.
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The US delegation continued to express concerns about China’s “non-market practices and industrial overcapacity”, according to her office.
Tai at the House hearing was questioned about a number of other China-related topics including the administration’s withdrawal of Trump-era demands on digital trade rules.
For several years Washington was a leading advocate of strong digital trade rules to protect cross-border data flows, prohibit forced data localisation as well as give access to source code as conditions of doing business in a foreign country.
The administration took notice of the fact that legislation had advanced through the House relating to TikTok and of concerns around transfers of Americans’ data to China, she added.
“We are adjusting our approach and policies on what we call digital trade because we see what you are doing up here with respect to addressing the risks and harms that can come from PRC technology policies and how they impact the rights and the interests of Americans and, for example, their data,” Tai said of lawmakers’ efforts on Capitol Hill.
US must treat China more like a cold-war opponent: Republican policymakers
Such assurances have failed to satisfy many in the US business community.
In a letter to the White House on Monday, 40 major business groups claiming together to represent every sector of the American economy called on the White House to “reassert its leadership in digital trade” and act against “damaging” trade barriers in foreign countries.
“We’re concerned that the administration is taking a laissez-faire approach to the foreign-trade barriers that often shut US goods and services out of markets abroad”, said John Murphy of the US Chamber of Commerce at a press briefing on Monday.
Foreign governments may see the change in stance on digital trade as a “green light” to raise barriers for American firms, Murphy added.
Digital trade generates more than half of US exports of traded services, according to the Information Technology Industry Council, a group representing American IT companies.