China Focuses on Announcement of Removal from Currency Manipulator List Ahead of Trade Agreement

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Park Sun-mi] On the 14th, Chinese state media reported that the U.S. Treasury Department has removed China from the currency manipulator list, focusing on the fact that this move was made ahead of the Phase One trade agreement between the U.S. and China.

China Central Television (CCTV) reported the U.S. statement announcing the removal of China from the currency manipulator list, stating, "In two days, on the 15th, senior negotiators from the U.S. and China are scheduled to sign the Phase One trade agreement." The Chinese economic media outlet Securities Times also reported, "Last August, the U.S. designated China as a currency manipulator for the first time in 25 years, but this time it announced a statement to remove China from the list," and followed up with news that Liu He, China's Vice Premier and head of the Chinese trade negotiation team, traveled to Washington from the 13th to the 15th to participate in the signing ceremony of the U.S.-China Phase One trade agreement scheduled for the 15th.

Prior to the U.S. Treasury Department's decision to remove China from the currency manipulator list, a senior official from the People's Bank of China mentioned the stable management of the yuan exchange rate, increasing the likelihood that this decision ahead of the trade agreement was somewhat anticipated. Pan Gongsheng, Vice Governor of the People's Bank of China and Director of the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE), recently attended a financial forum and stated, "Despite the complex external environment and increased volatility in international financial markets last year, the yuan exchange rate remained stable, and exchange rate flexibility played an important role in balancing the international payments and economic recovery," emphasizing the stability of the yuan.

Meanwhile, if Vice Premier Liu finalizes the Phase One trade agreement during this Washington visit, it will mark the first meaningful achievement in nearly two years of the trade war. Over the past two years, Liu has traveled to the U.S. seven times to resolve the U.S.-China trade war. In terms of flight time, this amounts to 200 hours, and in distance, approximately 145,000 km. Liu departed Beijing the day before and arrived in the U.S. on the same day, and is scheduled to participate in the signing ceremony of the Phase One agreement at the White House on the morning of the 15th. The details of the trade agreement are expected to be disclosed immediately after the signing ceremony.

Chinese state-run Global Times evaluated that Liu He's visit to the U.S. is raising expectations that a genuine ceasefire between the U.S. and China is approaching, quoting Huo Jianguo, Vice Chairman of the China WTO Research Association, who said, "Basically, 99.9% of the agreement has been finalized. Only the signing remains."

There is widespread optimism that this Phase One agreement will have a positive impact on the economic growth of both countries. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has assessed that after the signing of the Phase One agreement, China's economic growth rate could rise from the current forecast of 5.8% to 6% this year. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also cited the Phase One agreement as an important factor contributing to achieving the U.S. economic growth rate target of 2.5% this year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.