China said yesterday it would slap stiff penalties on a variety of US chicken meat it said was being sold at an unfairly low price, in the latest move likely to up the pressure on strained Sino-US relations.
The commerce ministry, in a preliminary ruling, said importers of US broiler chicken in China would have to pay deposits based on the difference — up to 105.4 percent — between the meat’s normal value and the alleged cut price.
“Broiler products imported from the United States were dumped [in China] and the domestic broiler sector has suffered material damages” as a result, the ministry said in a statement on its Web site.
The measure is to take effect next Saturday. The ministry did not say when a final ruling would be made on the issue.
Dumping occurs when a foreign company sells a product in another market at less than its normal value — generally taken to mean either the price in the domestic market or the production cost.
China launched an anti-dumping and anti-subsidy investigation into US chicken meat imports in September after receiving complaints from domestic producers. The move came a day after the US slapped steep tariffs on imported Chinese tires. The US has imposed duties on a number of other Chinese imports, from electric blankets to steel tubes and wire decking.
Li Wei, analyst at the state-linked Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, said the impact of the disputes that have emerged so far were limited given the immense volume of bilateral trade.
But he warned there would be “terrible” consequences if the rows were to escalate further.
“Trade relations are mutually dependent — one is almost sure to take corresponding measures if the other turns [aggressive],” he said. “The overall trade will definitely suffer in that case.”
On Wednesday, Obama again piqued China’s ire by saying his administration would get “much tougher” about enforcement of existing trade rules. Beijing hit back, saying “wrongful accusations and pressure” would not help relations.
The US and China are also at odds over Internet freedom after Google threatened to pull out of the country.
MORE VISITORS: The Tourism Administration said that it is seeing positive prospects in its efforts to expand the tourism market in North America and Europe Taiwan has been ranked as the cheapest place in the world to travel to this year, based on a list recommended by NerdWallet. The San Francisco-based personal finance company said that Taiwan topped the list of 16 nations it chose for budget travelers because US tourists do not need visas and travelers can easily have a good meal for less than US$10. A bus ride in Taipei costs just under US$0.50, while subway rides start at US$0.60, the firm said, adding that public transportation in Taiwan is easy to navigate. The firm also called Taiwan a “food lover’s paradise,” citing inexpensive breakfast stalls
TRADE: A mandatory declaration of origin for manufactured goods bound for the US is to take effect on May 7 to block China from exploiting Taiwan’s trade channels All products manufactured in Taiwan and exported to the US must include a signed declaration of origin starting on May 7, the Bureau of Foreign Trade announced yesterday. US President Donald Trump on April 2 imposed a 32 percent tariff on imports from Taiwan, but one week later announced a 90-day pause on its implementation. However, a universal 10 percent tariff was immediately applied to most imports from around the world. On April 12, the Trump administration further exempted computers, smartphones and semiconductors from the new tariffs. In response, President William Lai’s (賴清德) administration has introduced a series of countermeasures to support affected
CROSS-STRAIT: The vast majority of Taiwanese support maintaining the ‘status quo,’ while concern is rising about Beijing’s influence operations More than eight out of 10 Taiwanese reject Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework for cross-strait relations, according to a survey released by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) on Thursday. The MAC’s latest quarterly survey found that 84.4 percent of respondents opposed Beijing’s “one country, two systems” formula for handling cross-strait relations — a figure consistent with past polling. Over the past three years, opposition to the framework has remained high, ranging from a low of 83.6 percent in April 2023 to a peak of 89.6 percent in April last year. In the most recent poll, 82.5 percent also rejected China’s
PLUGGING HOLES: The amendments would bring the legislation in line with systems found in other countries such as Japan and the US, Legislator Chen Kuan-ting said Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Chen Kuan-ting (陳冠廷) has proposed amending national security legislation amid a spate of espionage cases. Potential gaps in security vetting procedures for personnel with access to sensitive information prompted him to propose the amendments, which would introduce changes to Article 14 of the Classified National Security Information Protection Act (國家機密保護法), Chen said yesterday. The proposal, which aims to enhance interagency vetting procedures and reduce the risk of classified information leaks, would establish a comprehensive security clearance system in Taiwan, he said. The amendment would require character and loyalty checks for civil servants and intelligence personnel prior to
RSS