US has ‘serious concerns’ over China’s trade practices: Official

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - The US has serious concerns with China’s trade practices and Washington is ready to take all necessary steps to defend its economic interests, an official said.

Speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) on Monday, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said that Washington has "serious concerns with China’s state-centered and non-market trade practices that were not addressed in the Phase One deal."

"We will use the full range of tools we have and develop new tools as needed to defend American economic interests from harmful policies and practices," Tai said, as she outlined the President Joe Biden administration's new approach regarding trade relations with China.

Under the Phase One of the trade deal inked between Washington and Beijing in January 2020, China needs to purchase around $200 billion in additional American goods in two years, in addition to other requirements.

The world's two largest economies slapped each other with billions of dollars of tariffs starting from 2017 under the former President Donald Trump administration, after Washington accused Beijing of blocking access to its markets and stealing intellectual property.

"For too long, China’s lack of adherence to global trading norms has undercut the prosperity of Americans and others around the world," Tai said.

She noted that Beijing's commitments in certain areas of Phase One have been met, but there have been shortfalls in others.

"Even with the Phase One Agreement in place, China’s government continues to pour billions of dollars into targeted industries and continues to shape its economy to the will of the state – hurting the interests of workers here in the US and around the world," she explained.

“Today, China represents 80 percent of global production – and large parts of the solar supply chain don’t even exist in the United States,” Tai added.