On Tuesday, as “phase one” of the trade negotiations between the U.S. and China nears completion, the Wall Street Journal reported that the interim agreement would not only deter new tariffs, but lessen existing tariffs. However, the “phase one” agreement reportedly will not include language regarding forced technology transfers.
China’s practice of forcing U.S. companies
Last week, Congress sent to the President’s desk a bill supporting pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), passed the Senate by unanimous consent and the House by a vote of 417-1 (last month, the House passed a similar measure authored
China and the United States continue to move towards finalizing a “phase one” trade deal. Speaking to the Economic Club of New York, President Trump stated that the United States is “close” to a deal and that it “could happen soon.” The President was also quick to note that he would only accept a deal
Late last week, China filed a request with the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) for authorization to “suspend concessions and related obligations” in the amount of $2.4 billion as recourse for the United States’ alleged failure to comply with a 2015 dispute settlement report. The disagreement stems from a dispute filed by China in May 2012 challenging certain aspects of 17 countervailing duty investigations by the United States, on a wide range of products, as conducted by the Department of Commerce (DS437). The decision reached by a WTO panel, as modified by the WTO Appellate Body and adopted by the DSB in January 2015, included a number of findings in favor of and against the United States. In particular, the WTO Appellate Body found that Commerce’s “rebuttable presumption” that Chinese state-owned enterprises are public bodies, and that Commerce’s rejection of Chinese private transaction prices as distorting the benchmark for the “provisions of goods or services for less than adequate remuneration” benefit analysis, were inconsistent with WTO rules.
In May 2016, China returned to the WTO to request consultations with the United States under Article 21.5 of the Dispute Settlement Understanding (DSU), which establishes procedures for when parties disagree about whether the losing party has implemented the DSB’s recommendations and rulings. Failed consultations led to the establishment of a compliance panel, which issued a decision in March 2018. Both China and the United States appealed to the WTO Appellate Body. In July 2019, the Appellate Body upheld the compliance panel’s
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On Friday, October 11, 2019, President Trump announced that a “phase one” agreement had been reached with China. Most notably, the U.S. agreed to suspend its plan to increase tariffs from 25% to 30% on $250 billion in Chinese goods, which had been scheduled for October 15. In return, China has agreed to purchase between
On Friday, August 23, China announced its plans to impose 5% to 10% tariffs on $75 billion of American products in response to Washington’s recent tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese products. China’s new tariffs will take effect in two stages, the first on September 1, 2019 and second on December 15, 2019. The new
Since last year, the Trump Administration has imposed tariffs ranging from 10 percent to 25 percent on nearly all imports of Chinese goods. Now, the Administration is set to impose an additional $300 billion of tariffs on Chinese goods as of September 1, 2019, that will cover all remaining goods, the so-called “List 4”
Last June, pursuant to Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, President Trump announced the imposition of a tariff of 25 percent on certain imported goods from China (valued at $34 billion) in response to China’s unfair intellectual property and market access practices. The Administration subsequently imposed tariffs on two more groups of Chinese
Effective May 10, 2019 importations of merchandise covered under the Section 301 third tranche, manufactured in China and entered into the U.S., are subject to the increase in additional duties from 10 to 25%. However, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection updated guidance, the increased duties of 25% will not apply to goods a)
On Sunday, May 5, U.S. President Donald Trump tweeted that the current 10% tariff on $200 billion in Chinese imports to the United States would increase to 25% on Friday, May 10. On Monday, United States Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer confirmed the administration’s plans, saying the tariff rate increase would take effect at 12:01
