In light of the escalation of tensions in trade relations between the United States and China, with both countries adopting strict export policies, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) said that US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo’s China trip that ended Wednesday offers a glimmer of hope among US companies in China.
Raimondo’s visit marked the resumption of economic and commercial dialogue between Washington and Beijing, offering a glimmer of hope among US companies that say they face increasingly hostile business conditions in China, WSJ said in a report.
But even as Raimondo promised some results of the new engagement in the coming months, American business representatives said they remained deeply concerned about the impact of growing bilateral political tensions, the newspaper said.
The Wall Street Journal quoted the president of the American Chamber of Commerce in China Michael Hart as saying that Raimondos visit the first in five years by a US commerce chief “cools the tone, making it more constructive and less combative.” The US Secretary of Commerce and her Chinese counterpart Wang Wentao reached an agreement during a meeting in Beijing to establish a working group to address trade and investment issues between the two countries.
“I have no expectation that on my first visit, after my first meetings with Chinese officials, we would suddenly resolve specific issues,” Raimondo said at a press conference Wednesday afternoon before her departure from Shanghai.
Raimondos itinerary included meeting with China-based heads of US multinationals at a roundtable discussion. They raised challenges and the hurdles with government procurement that many technology, pharmaceutical and chemical companies contend with, according to WSJ.
Raimondo seemed genuinely interested in trying to mitigate the setbacks facing US companies in China served as a welcome, said Sean Stein, the chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai.
After the Biden administration slapped export controls preventing American chip technology from entering Chinas chip industry, China banned major domestic firms from buying from chip-maker Micron Technology, citing “significant security risks.” Some in US business circles said a commitment to talk might be incremental, given the tense political relations since the Trump administration. “Both sides need to tone down the rhetoric on national security, and to stop viewing every action as a threat or a slight,” said James Zimmerman, a former AmCham China President.
“No level of dialogue or working groups will progress beyond the usual pleasantries until some level of trust is regained,” Zimmerman said.
Raimondos visit came as China struggled to revitalize a foundering economy weighed down by declining exports, falling consumer prices and record-high youth unemployment.
China accounted for 13.3% of US goods imports during the first six months of this year, the lowest level in 20 years. Foreign direct investment into China tumbled 48% in 2022 from a year earlier, and continues to decline sharply this year.
Nonetheless, Beijing has publicly insisted that the onus remained on Washington to improve ties. On Tuesday, Chinese Premier Li Qiang told Raimondo that Beijing hoped “that the United States will meet China halfway” and “take more practical and beneficial actions” to develop the bilateral relationship.
Source: Qatar News Agency