From Pressure to Defense over "China Not Keeping Promises"... Will the US Change Its Trade Policy Toward China?

Katherine Tai, United States Trade Representative (USTR) Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy New York=Special Correspondent Joselgina] "We must acknowledge the limitations of agreements focused on changes in China's behavior and turn the page on outdated approaches."

Katherine Tai, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and head of U.S. trade, hinted at the possibility of changes in U.S. trade policy toward China on the 30th (local time).

According to Politico, AFP, and other sources, in a written response submitted to the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee on the same day, Representative Tai stated, "The U.S. has repeatedly sought commitments from China, but ultimately has only confirmed that substantial change is hard to find."

This is a critique that new trade policy measures are needed since the tariff wars and sanctions during the Trump administration failed to change China's unfair trade practices.

She said, "Our strategy must go beyond simply pressuring China for change; it must vigorously defend our values and economic interests from the negative impacts of China's unfair policies and actions." She also emphasized, "While keeping the door open for dialogue with China, including trade agreements, we must recognize the limitations of such agreements."

During the Trump administration, when trade conflicts between the U.S. and China peaked, the two countries reached an agreement in early 2020 to mend relations. The core of the deal was that the U.S. would partially ease retaliatory tariffs on China, while China would increase imports from the U.S. up to $200 billion. However, since then, the U.S. has criticized China for not faithfully implementing this agreement.

Especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain conflicts have arisen over key components such as semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries.

Representative Tai criticized China's failure to comply with the agreement as "a familiar pattern of behavior" and pointed out that "current trade measures are too slow or inadequate for effective response." Furthermore, she argued, "To ensure the competitiveness of our industries, we must create new domestic tools to defend our economic interests and foster strategic investments."

This is interpreted as an indication of the Biden administration's intention to change policy, following its recent statement that China is the greatest competitor. Representative Tai also urged the swift passage of the Innovation and Competition Act, which includes investments to nurture the semiconductor industry, and emphasized the importance of policies promoting domestic manufacturing. This bill is expected to pass as early as the first quarter of this year after negotiations between the Senate and the House.

AFP reported, "Representative Tai stated that policies encouraging domestic manufacturing would benefit the U.S. economy more than pressuring China to change unfair trade practices," and added, "Last week, the Biden administration announced tariff exemptions on 352 products imported from China amid inflation concerns." Politico evaluated this as "a noticeable shift from the existing trade policy stance."

However, some local observers point out that Representative Tai's remarks mainly criticize the inadequacy of existing policy tools without specifically mentioning new measures.

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