China denounced as protectionist new US anti-dumping duties on steel pipes and launched its own investigation into imports of US-made automobiles yesterday, a week before a visit by US President Barack Obama.
It also called for Washington’s swift recognition that China is a market economy, which would make it harder for the US to declare Chinese products are dumped.
China’s calibrated response may be an attempt to avoid a tense atmosphere in the hope of concessions during Obama’s visit.
The US on Thursday slapped preliminary anti-dumping duties of US$2.63 billion on Chinese-made pipes used in the oil and gas industry, in the biggest US trade action against China to date. That follows countervailing duties on the pipes, announced in September.
“China resolutely opposes the abuse of protectionist measures,” China’s Commerce Ministry said on its Web site.
Obama will visit China for several days from Nov. 15 and trade disputes are likely to feature prominently.
China’s investigation would target sedans with engine capacity of 2 liters and above, as well as sports utility vehicles, the Commerce Ministry said, issuing a long list of incentives and tax breaks granted by the US federal government and the state of Michigan.
“We hope that the US will set aside its biases and as quickly as possible recognize China’s market economic status, thoroughly overcoming its double standards and giving equal and fair treatment to Chinese firms,” it said.
In trade meetings with US officials last week in Hangzhou, the Chinese pressed for recognition as a market economy, before the 2016 deadline negotiated when it entered the WTO.
“We hope that the US will abide by the principles of free trade and non-discrimination in trade under WTO rules in handling this issue,” Chinese Vice Minister of Commerce Yi Xiaozhun (易小準) said.
Washington promised to set up a panel to consider the issue.
‘NO SECURITY RISK’: The Railway Bureau reassured the public that the technicians’ activities were limited to technical guidance and did not involve sensitive systems The Railway Bureau yesterday said it had invited eight Chinese technicians to assist with an airport MRT construction project. The bureau issued the confirmation after an Internet user said Chinese nationals had entered the construction zone of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport’s Terminal 3 project. They asked why “individuals from an enemy state” were allowed access to such a major national infrastructure project, which raised serious concerns over Taiwan’s industrial safety, sensitive systems and information security. The bureau’s Northern Region Engineering Branch Office said subcontractor Taiwan Handle Industrial Co (台灣手把工業) of the Taoyuan airport MRT’s “Contract No. CU05 Project A14 Station Civil, MEP &
A US uncrewed surface vessel (USV) encountered multiple Chinese warships during an autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait, US defense company Seasats said in a statement on Wednesday. Seasats announced that a Lightfish USV had completed the first autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait. Over five days, the USV traversed the entire length of the Strait while constantly monitoring surface vessel traffic, the company said. The Lightfish encountered multiple Chinese warships, one of which was a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) Type 056 corvette, it said. The Chinese vessels were operating “well within Taiwan’s exclusive economic zone without transmitting their identity via the
GREATER REACH? Auto parts and wood products would face tariffs of up to 15%, matching those targeting the EU, Japan and South Korea, Vice Premier said The US has announced that preferential tariff treatment for Taiwan’s non-semiconductor Section 232 goods would take effect retroactively from May 1, the Executive Yuan said yesterday. The US government yesterday posted a notice on the Federal Register’s public inspection Web site previewing tariff concessions for Taiwan under a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Taiwan-US investment after two months of negotiations. The MOU signed on Jan. 15 stipulated three major preferential tariff arrangements: a 15 percent “reciprocal” tariff rate for Taiwan without stacking most-favored nation (MFN) rates; preferential Section 232 treatment for semiconductors and related products; and preferential Section 232 treatment for non-semiconductor
TIT-FOR-TAT: The US allegedly revoked the visa of a Chinese national working at Xinhua News Agency in the US in response to Beijing’s expulsion of Vivian Wang The Presidential Office yesterday condemned China for expelling a New York Times correspondent from Beijing following the newspaper’s interview with President William Lai (賴清德), saying the move highlighted Beijing’s suppression of press freedom and its threat to international news media. Taiwan has noted a series of recent incidents in which Beijing used similar tactics to “threaten and pressure international media outlets and journalists,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) said in a statement. “This concerns not only press freedom and freedom of expression, but also the safety of journalists, and Taiwan and relevant partners are paying close attention to the situation,” she
RSS