Key details on the agenda and deliverables for President Donald Trump’s trip to China early next month remain unclear as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer prepare to meet with China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng in Paris over Sunday and Monday.
President Joe Biden is heading to New Delhi this week for the annual G20 Leaders’ Summit taking place over Saturday and Sunday. It was anticipated that the summit could provide a venue for a meeting between Biden and President Xi Jinping, but Xi is no longer expected to attend.
US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo held a series of meetings in China over August 28 to 30. The trip follows a series of Cabinet-level visits to China this summer, including by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in July.
US-China bilateral trade in goods saw a sharp contraction during the first half of 2023 after reaching a record high the year prior. The contraction in bilateral trade occurred amid a broader, albeit more modest, contraction in US-worldwide trade in goods, stemming from global and domestic economic woes that have led the WTO, IMF, and World Bank to forecast slower growth for global trade in 2023.
In 2020, the Chinese government sought to rein in real estate developers’ high debt levels with the introduction of the “three red lines,” which imposed borrowing limits on real estate firms. While the move was meant to stabilize the industry, developers and local governments alike have been under financial pressure as developers face declining property sales and local governments see decreasing revenue from land sales.
On August 20, it was reported China had formally established the Central Science and Technology Commission (CSTC) and that the commission hosted its inaugural meeting. The CSTC was created as part of the Party and Government Reform Plan, the principal deliverable at the National People’s Congress held in March.
Over the last couple of months, there have been several noteworthy policy and regulatory updates affecting China’s financial services sector. In July, the CSRC released rules that seek to implement a new system for futures and derivatives trading while the State Council revised regulations to increase supervision of private equity.
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo will be in China from August 27 to 30 for a series of meetings with Chinese officials and US business leaders in Beijing and Shanghai. In anticipation of the trip, Raimondo met with China’s Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng this week, but Commerce’s press release offered little detail on what was discussed.
The last few months have seen multiple notable developments affecting the transportation industry. Earlier this month, China and the United States took action to increase flights between the two countries, and US and Chinese airlines have since announced plans to increase service.
On Thursday, the International Trade Administration (ITA) announced preliminary anti-dumping duties of 122.5 percent on tin mill steel imported from China, 7.02 percent on imports from Germany, and 5.29 percent on imports from Canada.
In the last few months, there has been a moderate slowdown in industrial policies for high tech issued at the central and local levels. China’s government reorganization after the Two Sessions has meant that there will be a pause as bureaucrats adjust to their new roles.
