China draws up trade retaliation options against US - February 9, 2018

Media Report

February 09 , 2018

Financial Times：China draws up trade retaliation options against US
Financial Times reports: "China is drawing up options for hitting back at the US if Washington imposes trade penalties for alleged intellectual property theft, but so far Beijing wants to avoid escalation mindful of the pain it could cause its own consumers. When China's commerce ministry earlier this week announced an anti-dumping investigation of US exports of sorghum, an animal feed, analysts said it reflected Beijing's desire to continue to contain bilateral trade disputes to relatively narrow sectors. "China has lots of cards to play but is in no rush to play them," said Xu Hongcai at the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, a government-affiliated think-tank in Beijing. "For now there is small-scale trade friction, not a trade war. Our moves have always been defensive. We will not escalate the situation." China imported $1.1bn worth of US sorghum last year. The announcement of the commerce ministry's investigation was widely interpreted as a response to US President Donald Trump's imposition of a 30 per cent tariff on imported solar cells last month. Chinese solar cell exports to the US, which were already subject to punitive tariffs, have been slumping in recent years and fell 50 per cent to just $620m in 2017, according to China's commerce ministry. By comparison, the world's two largest economies had a bilateral goods trade of $636bn last year, according to US figures, with China enjoying a record surplus of $375bn."
CNBC：US voices concern over 11 Uighur Muslims that China wants Malaysia to deport
CNBC reports: "The United States on Friday expressed concerns over Malaysia's possible deportation of 11 Uighur Muslims to China, following a Reuters report that Beijing wanted the Southeast Asian country to hand over the Uighur who escaped from Thailand. Citing sources, Reuters reported on Thursday that the 11 ethnic Uighur from China, who were among 20 that escaped from a Thai jail last year, have been detained in Malaysia, and that Beijing was in talks with Malaysia over their deportation. Malaysia was under "great pressure" from China to hand them over to Beijing, and not to Thailand, and some Western foreign missions were trying to dissuade them from sending the Uighur to China, the sources said. "We are concerned by media reports regarding Malaysia's possible deportation of Uighur individuals to China," a U.S. State Department spokesperson told Reuters in an email. "We urge Chinese authorities to uphold international human rights norms with regard to any individuals who have been returned to China, and to ensure transparency, due process, and the safety and proper treatment of these individuals." Human Rights Watch called on Malaysia to ensure the detained Uighur are not forcibly deported to China as they face "credible threats of imprisonment and torture"."
Politico：China Is Gaining on the United States. What Are We Doing About It?
Politico comments: "America's military advantage over China is rapidly eroding. This fact was underscored by the Trump administration's first National Defense Strategy recently released by Defense Secretary James Mattis, who declared that "great power competition, not terrorism, is now the primary focus of U.S. national security." This pronouncement of China as a top priority is well-considered, long overdue, and—potentially—historic. Much will ride on whether President Donald Trump can actually deliver on refashioning U.S. defense policy. His first State of the Union address was not encouraging. After only a passing mention of China, he gave considerably more attention to the Islamic State and North Korea, calling into question whether he shares his team's commitment to confronting the China challenge. If he does, the president will have to do more than revise his rhetoric. The Trump administration needs to commit additional funds to remain militarily competitive in Asia... Trump's budget next week will be an early indicator that more dollars are (or are not) in fact dedicated to enhancing U.S. military power and solving operational challenges in the Western Pacific. The U.S. military sorely needs larger stockpiles of munitions, stronger passive and active defenses at U.S. bases in the region, more sea and airlift to project and disperse forces, more advanced air battle management systems to ensure full awareness of the battle space, and more ships and fifth-generation aircraft forward-deployed and ready to fight in the Asia Pacific. It also needs more research and development, and greater investments in advanced technologies—including artificial intelligence, hypersonic technology, electronic warfare and cyber—all to ensure the U.S. military can access and operate in East Asia, despite China's local advantages."

Calendar

2018-02-08 China's imports surge 37% in January, exports jump 11%
2018-02-07 The Rise of China and the Fall of the ‘Free Trade’ Myth
2018-02-06 China’s latest trade maneuver is worrying. Here’s the story.
2018-02-05 China Opens Inquiry Into U.S. Sorghum as Trade Tensions Worsen
2018-02-04 China Launches Probe Over US Sorghum Imports
2018-02-02 Britain’s May discusses trade barriers with China’s Xi
2018-02-01 China believes in free and fair trade too, Mr Trump
2018-01-31 Don't Fear China's Arctic Takeover
2018-01-30 U.S. companies complain of unfair treatment in China, want pressure but not war
2018-01-29 The Trump team’s idea to counter China with nationalized 5G is just what China would do

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