White House Talks with China Over Trade Deal Continues
The United States and China have been locked in a trade war that has seen them slap tariffs on each other’s goods, causing economic turbulence globally since March 2018. However, both countries have been trying to come to a trade deal agreement.
At present, China has lowered tariffs on American cars, while the US has delayed the increase of tariffs on some Chinese products, after the 13th series of trade negotiations in Washington in mid-October. While there was no major US-Chinese statement released after the talks, speculation is that a deal could be made in the coming weeks.
A tariff war that started over a US complaint of Beijing’s work policies and intellectual property practices against US companies, analysts believe that China is being more flexible than the US government in this trade-off. President Donald Trump has been vocal about his dissatisfaction with the current state of the agreement, stating that the current trade situation isn’t fair to the United States.
The move to try to negotiate deals with China also comes at a critical time, with the American market showing signs of slowing growth and the upcoming US presidential election. Over the past few years, China has become a key economic power and one of the most significant trade partners with the United States, making a trade agreement between the two countries all the more important.
While both sides work towards making a deal, there is still some concern from US business leaders who are worried about the implications of the tariff war. They point out that additional duties could cause consumers to find other options allover the world for goods that would generally have come from China.
Concerns also remain about China’s treatment of minorities and its fight for increased influence in the world. The recent ban in the US of Chinese-owned and operated social media app TikTok and the continued public scrutiny of Chinese tech giant Huawei have shown that the US is being cautious in its dealings with Beijing.
But the outcome of these ongoing talks may provide a direction of where the US-China relationship will head. It will also show whether or not the two superpowers are capable of balancing their political and economic differences for the benefit of their people and the world.
