The White House’s decision to issue a three-month “cease-fire” in the escalating trade war between the U.S. and China would be a welcome reprieve from the economic warfare between the two nations, but it remains unclear what tangible results can be achieved from the measure, a top House Democrat said Sunday.
“A ceasefire on more China tariffs and further negotiations are welcome [but] China’s unfair trade must be countered with strategic and thoughtful policies,” New Jersey Democrat and Ranking Member House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade Rep. Bill Pascrell said Sunday.
“I will watch for answers, but so far I hear crickets. China’s non-market policies pose a myriad of problems for the US and global economies,” he said, noting that “any long-term solutions must stem the flow of outsourcing and boost American jobs.”
Mr. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reportedly reached the deal during bilateral talks during the G-20 Summit in Buenos Aries, Argentina this past week.
As part of the deal, Washington agreed not raise tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods to 25 percent by next month, a move Mr. Trump had vowed to take prior to the G-20 summit. Beijing agreed to purchase a “significant amount” of agricultural, energy, industrial goods from the U.S., Reuters reports, citing a White House statement.
China and the U.S. also agreed to kick off talks on technology transfers, intellectual property rights, non-tariff barriers and cyber theft, administration officials say. Chinese officials on state-run media Sunday lauded the deal, saying both sided had reached an “important consensus” on economic and international trade issues. Both countries are currently enforcing a 10 percent tariff on imported goods from the U.S. and China, entering their respective nations
“President’s negotiating skills on China [do not] impress me,” Rep. Pascrell said Sunday. “I’ll be watching whether this truce actually delivers or if Mr. Trump will just blow things up again,” he added.
• Carlo Muñoz can be reached at cmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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