US-China relations: Joe Biden says trade war tariffs to remain in place for now as alliance building comes first
- US President-elect Joe Biden tells The New York Times he will not make any ‘immediate moves’ to lift trade war tariffs ahead of trade deal review
- Biden says ‘best China strategy’ is to get traditional Asian and European allies ‘on the same page’
US President-elect Joe Biden confirmed that he will not make any “immediate moves” to lift the tariffs that the Trump administration has imposed on imports of Chinese goods before a full review of the existing phase one trade deal and consultations with US allies, despite China’s hopes that it would be able to renegotiate the trade agreement with the new US administration.
In an interview with The New York Times published on Wednesday, Biden said the “best China strategy” was to get all traditional US allies in Asia and Europe “on the same page”, which will be his major priority “in the opening weeks” of his presidency.
Biden said his trade policies will focus on “China’s abusive practices”, including “stealing intellectual property, dumping products, illegal subsidies to corporations” and forced technology transfers.
However, China has not been able to fulfil its purchase commitments under the deal. From January to October this year, China’s imports of all covered products accounted for only 55 per cent of its year-to-date target, according to a November report by the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE).