US trade chief says new tools needed to counter China’s ‘20-year distortions’ affecting global economy
- Loss of American jobs, income and manufacturing capabilities accompanying surge in low-priced imports is ‘real and devastating’, says Katherine Tai
- ‘New playbook on China’ needed because Washington’s traditional levers against Beijing’s approach have yielded limited benefits, she adds
The United States needs to develop wider strategic approaches beyond narrowly tailored defensive tariffs to counter “20-year distortions” created by China and affecting the global economy, according to Washington’s top trade negotiator.
The Biden administration will continue to press Beijing on its “state-centred and non-market trade practices”, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai told a forum on Monday.
Delivering another harsh public critique of China’s trade policies, Tai said the loss of American jobs, income and manufacturing capabilities that accompanied a surge in low-priced imports from China had been “real and devastating”.
“For too long, the PRC’s unfair policies and practices undercut American prosperity, suppressed labour rights, and weakened environmental standards.”
Tai warned that Washington’s traditional trade tools to confront China, like anti-dumping countervailing duties, had not been able to prevent the “hollowing out” of many American industries critical for national security in view of Beijing’s ability to affect the global market.