China and US have plenty of ‘ammunition’ to expand trade war to other areas, says WTO head
Roberto Azevedo expresses ‘concern’ at stand-off between world’s two biggest economies, saying it could go beyond tariffs and trade
The trade dispute between the United States and China could well expand into other areas given the significant “ammunition” the two countries have, the director general of the World Trade Organisation said on Wednesday.
Speaking at an event in Rio de Janeiro against the backdrop of growing trade tensions between Beijing and Washington, Roberto Azevedo said the WTO has focused on trying to increase dialogue between the two countries.
“I’m very concerned,” he said at the event. “To be honest, I don’t think it’s over. They have lots of ammunition and it can expand to other areas beyond just tariffs … and trade.” He did not elaborate.
On Tuesday, in the latest sign of deteriorating commercial relations between the world’s two largest economies, Beijing added US$60 billion worth of US products to its import tariff list in retaliation for US President Donald Trump’s planned levies on US$200 billion worth of Chinese goods.
Trump has long railed against the WTO, and his government has eroded its power by blocking appointments to its appeals chamber as existing trade judges’ terms end.