Widespread electricity shortages have affected multiple regions across China, impacting company operations. In conversations with member companies, many reported power cuts of more than 50 percent versus their normal allowance, with severe cases seeing forced reductions of 75 to 85 percent or even complete shutoffs. This has led to significant production delays, increased costs, and supply chain disruptions. Foreign, domestic, and state-owned companies have all been affected, providing...
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October 13th, 2021
October 13th, 2021
Over the last few years, China has introduced new protections for intellectual property (IP) rights, including by establishing technical IP courts and making progress toward patent linkage for pharmaceuticals to fulfill commitments in the Phase One trade agreement. However, US company perceptions of the IP environment in China continue to send mixed signals about China’s progress improving IP rights enforcement and protection.
October 13th, 2021
On August 20, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) and the Ministry of Transportation (MOT) jointly released Several Measures on Vehicle Data Security Management (Trial) alongside other agencies. The measures clarify the concept of important data, lowering its threshold to such a degree that it is likely many large multinational companies in the automotive sector will be subject to cross-border and data localization restrictions.
October 5th, 2021
Yesterday, US Trade Representative Katherine Tai rolled out the Biden administration’s long-anticipated China trade strategy in a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, DC. The speech was measured and high level. USCBC understands that Tai views yesterday’s speech as a blueprint of just the initial steps the Biden administration will take to shape its US-China trade policy. We welcome these efforts and hope to work with the Biden administration on a China...
September 22nd, 2021
In the summer of 2020, then-Attorney General Bill Barr warned in a speech on US-China relations that America’s corporate leaders “should be alert to how [they] might be used, and how [their] efforts on behalf of a foreign company or government could implicate the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA).” This and other statements in Barr’s speech were an unmistakable warning that China-related business advocacy efforts were in the crosshairs of Justice Department lawyers. Under the Biden...
September 22nd, 2021
Competing pressures regarding human rights and labor issues involving the Uyghur minority in Xinjiang and elsewhere in China have been building over the last year. In response to reports of forced labor, the United States has issued import bans on cotton, tomatoes, and silica-based products from the region, and sanctioned Chinese officials and organizations. The Senate has approved legislation that, if passed into law, would ban all products from Xinjiang from entering the United States...
September 22nd, 2021
China temporarily stopped allowing foreign nationals with valid visas and residency permits to enter China starting in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak and has only issued very limited special temporary visas (Q, M, and Z visas) since then. In September 2020, China lifted the additional visa requirements for foreign nationals who hold a valid residence permit. When it comes to hiring foreign nationals who do not yet possess a residence permit, the additional requirements remain in...
September 15th, 2021
The past few weeks have seen multiple high-level engagements between the US and Chinese governments. In Washington, USCBC is becoming acquainted with China's new ambassador to the United States, Qin Gang. At this juncture, please allow me to share what we have learned and introduce an important new member of USCBC’s senior leadership.
September 8th, 2021
The term “common prosperity” has reappeared in the Chinese government’s lexicon, most recently during last month’s meeting of the Central Committee for Financial and Economic Affairs (CCFEA), the Chinese Communist Party’s highest-level economic policymaking body. President Xi Jinping, in a highly televised speech, framed common prosperity as the next step in China’s development and as an essential requirement of socialism.
September 8th, 2021
August recess was anything but quiet, as Washington grappled with massive spending bills and the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. When lawmakers return to regularly scheduled hearings and floor votes in mid-September, they are unlikely to spend the last eight weeks of the legislative year prioritizing China issues. However, they could still codify certain bipartisan proposals by burying them in must-pass spending bills or passing them by unanimous consent, two processes that are opaque to...
