China to propose restoring 2020 ‘Phase 1’ trade deal with US, WSJ reports
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China denounced the imposition of tariffs on its imports and pushed back on fentanyl.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BEIJING - China’s initial proposal to tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration will centre on restoring the “ Phase 1” trade deal signed in 2020
Other parts of China’s plan will include a pledge to not devalue the renminbi, an offer to make more investments in the US and a commitment to reduce exports of fentanyl precursors, according to the WSJ report.
On Feb 1, Mr Trump imposed 25 per cent tariffs on Mexican and most Canadian imports
China denounced the imposition of tariffs on its imports and pushed back on fentanyl, but left the door open for talks with the US that could avoid a deepening conflict. In contrast, Canada, a long-time ally of the US, slapped retaliatory tariffs of 25 per cent on C$155 billion (S$144 billion) of US goods.
The Phase 1 trade deal Mr Trump signed with Beijing in 2020 ended a nearly two-year tariff war at that time.
The deal required China to increase purchases of US exports by US$200 billion (S$273 billion) over two years, but Beijing failed to meet the targets as the Covid-19 pandemic hit.
Reuters reported in January that Mr Trump had directed the US Trade Representative to assess China’s performance under that trade deal.
The Journal report also added that Beijing planned to treat TikTok largely as a “commercial matter”, meaning it would let investors in Chinese owner ByteDance negotiate a deal with interested bidders in the US.
Mr Trump had previously said he was in talks with multiple people over buying TikTok, including Microsoft
The US Department of Commerce did not respond to a request for comment on the WSJ report outside regular business hours.
China’s Commerce Ministry was not immediately contactable for comment on the report due to the Chinese New Year holiday. REUTERS
