New U.S. sanctions on China in response to the country’s oppression of Uighurs could be effective, but there’s a risk of retaliation, experts said while speaking at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing. Uighurs are an officially recognized ethnic minority group in China and other parts of Asia, descended from ancient tribes in Mongolia.
Exports to China
A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson sidestepped questions at a Beijing news conference May 17 about media reports suggesting new U.S.-China trade talks are off the table for now. Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping “have maintained contact through various means,” the spokesperson said. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative didn’t comment. The U.S. and China “intend to continue further discussions,” a USTR notice in the Federal Register said, officially proposing the 25 percent Section 301 tariffs on $300 billion in Chinese goods not previously dutied. Requests to appear at public hearings on the proposed List 4 tariffs are due June 10 in docket USTR–2019–0004 at regulations.gov, and written comments are due June 17, the same day the hearings are set to begin. Post-hearing rebuttal comments are due seven days after the hearings end.
U.S. exporters applauded the Trump administration's plans to roll back steel and aluminum tariffs and the decision by both Canada and Mexico to lift retaliatory tariffs.
China’s May 13 announcement of additional tariffs on U.S. imports is expected to impact more than 300 U.S. agricultural products that were valued at about $3 billion in 2017, according to a May 17 report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service. The products affected “encompass a broad range of categories,” USDA said, including “live animals and animal products, horticultural products, grains and oilseeds, food ingredients, prepared foods, wine and distilled spirits, and sweeteners.” Combined with earlier tariff increases announced by China since April 2018, “this brings the total number of U.S. agricultural and related products targeted” by China to over 1,000 products valued at about $22.6 billion in 2017, USDA said. USDA urges U.S. exporters to “check with their local importers to verify the changes in tariff treatment.”
Recent editions of Mexico's Diario Oficial list trade-related notices as follows:
The Commerce Department on May 16 added Huawei Technologies to the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Entity List, eliciting strong reaction from Huawei and China over the move that may have substantial effects on U.S. exporters. In a notice in the Federal Register, BIS said it is imposing license requirements on Huawei and its 68 non-U.S. affiliates for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations with a license review policy of presumption of denial. The Federal Register notice is scheduled for May 21 publication, but the changes take effect May 16. All shipments aboard carriers as of May 16 may proceed to their destinations under previous license conditions.
China’s General Administration of Customs plans to “advance” joint law enforcement with its U.S. counterparts on intellectual property rights, according to a state-run news agency Xinhua report May 15. The effort comes amid expanded international cooperation on IPR protection, with more than 190 cooperation documents already signed and memorandums of understanding on IPR law enforcement signed with the U.S., the European Union, Russia, Japan and South Korea, the report said. A joint law enforcement mechanism has already been set up with Russian customs authorities, Xinhua said. “In addition, China will facilitate information and data sharing with other countries to more effectively crack down on IPR infringement and boost customs officers exchanges for capacity building,” the report said, citing an interview with GAC Department of General Operation chief Jin Hai.
After the Trump administration issued an executive order and announced export controls that targeted Chinese technology firm Huawei, China hinted at retaliation, saying it will take “necessary measures to safeguard” its companies. During May 16 press conferences, China’s Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Foreign Affairs denounced the U.S.’s decision to add Huawei Technologies to the Commerce Department’s Entity List and criticized the executive order President Donald Trump signed on May 15.
Though allegations that China’s “retreat” from previous commitments in the trade talks with the U.S. were the Trump administration’s grounds for hiking the List 3 Section 301 tariffs to 25 percent and proposing a fourth tranche of duties on remaining Chinese imports not previously dutied, it was the U.S. side that actually reneged, suggested a Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson May 16. “It takes sincerity to make a consultation meaningful,” the spokesperson said during a press conference. “Judging from what the U.S. did in previous talks, there are two things we have to make clear,” he said. “First, we need to follow the principle of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit. Second, words must be matched with deeds. Flip-flopping is the last thing we need.” During the various rounds of trade negotiations, the U.S. “repeatedly rejected rules in consultations and brought difficulties to the talks, while China, on the other hand, has been acting in a constructive spirit all along,” he said. “The international community bears witness to all this.” The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative didn’t comment.
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., introduced a bill, the China Technology Transfer Control Act of 2019, on May 14 that would increase controls on “national interest technology” exports to China and allow the U.S. to sanction people or entities that violate the controls. In a press release, Hawley’s office said the bill “places all ‘core technologies’ from China’s ‘Made in China 2025’ strategy on the Department of Commerce’s Export Control List.” The core technologies include 15 products, the release said, such as “artificial intelligence, robotics, semiconductors, advanced construction equipment and lithium battery manufacturing.” “For too long, China has exploited American innovation to undermine our values and threaten our security,” Hawley said in a statement. “This legislation is an important step toward keeping American technology out of the hands of the Chinese government and its military.”