Trade war: why US and China remain so far apart on intellectual property rights
The two sides are ‘speaking different languages’ about what the US government sees as inadequate laws and IP theft
Among all the thorny issues of the ongoing trade war between the world’s two largest economies, intellectual property rights (IPR) protection will be one of the most difficult areas in which to find breakthroughs because Beijing is not going to concede to US demands, sources have said.
United States President Donald Trump has repeatedly lashed out at China’s lax IPR protection laws, forced technology transfer and alleged IP theft, saying it costs the US as much as US$600 billion per year, a charge China has denied.
China will improve its IPR protection to bolster innovation and support industries, but not as a result of US pressure, government sources told the South China Morning Post.
“Beijing thinks all the accusations of forced technology transfer and IP theft are groundless,” the source said, noting that since the “discrepancy is huge and there is no common understanding on the IPR issue, China can and will do nothing to address the problems that do not exist”.
From Beijing’s perspective, China has made great progress in improving IPR protection in an economy with a reputation for piracy and counterfeits imitating a long list of brands ranging from shoemaker New Balance to smart gadget designer Apple.