With all the nuances behind the current trade relationship between China and the US, one important fact has emerged: China has been said to draw such list of the particular US goods that will get exemption from the 125% tariffs which was impose earlier. Those sources tell this column that this is part of a carefully measured Chinese response to the economic fall-out that has followed the Washington trade talks.
China Temporarily Hushed About Tariff Adjustments
Through reports about this Chinese tariff strategy, an indication is that China is using a system of private notification to relevant companies in China about this changed tariff policy. However, the specific details of how many and what kinds of products are being included in this so-called “whitelist” have not been released to the general public.
Rather than making a general public announcement, China seems to have been reaching out directly to the impacted firms, relaying the details of the product tariffs that were eligible for waivers. A well-connected pharmaceutical company importations specialist who brings-in US made medicinal products for China has received communication from the Shanghai Pudong government relating to the existence of this list. The company had previously lobbied for tariff exclusions, stressing its dependence on specific U.S.-made technologies.
China Expands List of Product Groups Exempted from Tariffs
Moreover, China also seems to be expanding the scope of goods getting these exemptions there as well. And according to reports, China has since added U.S. Reportedly, such a decision came after the demand of some large ethane processors, for whom the USA remains the main source of supply. Earlier, China had given exemptions to a limited list of products, such as some medicines, microchips and aircraft engines. It points to a discipline of China prioritizing goods considered critical or goods for which other suppliers are not easily accessible.
China’s Evaluation of the Impacts of Trade Tension
Fingerprint are suggesting China is also in parallel, looking at the wider economic impacts of the trade war. Recently, authorities in eastern China asked a foreign business lobby group to supply a comprehensive list of all major problems created by tariffs so it can assess each case individually, according to people briefed on the matter. On another recent Sunday, government personnel in Xiamen, the important port city and southeast Fujian manufacturing hub for the electronics sector, were said to have distributed surveys to the firms. The bill cites surveys sent to businesses in the textiles and semiconductor industries that asked about their trade with the U.S. and how both the U.S. tariffs and Chinese tariffs would affect their businesses.
Other Key Insights
However, these moves are not random but rather a well-thought-out strategy, it indicates that. Despite a public front on the trade talks with the U.S., China is quietly providing relief to certain industries and firms hit hard by the trade war through more targeted, though less visible, policy-making. This two-pronged approach enables countries to reconcile the complexities of the trade landscape with its domestic economic imperatives while also assuaging international communications.
Recently, United States President Donald Trump weighed in, saying that he thought there was a possibility of a trade deal with China and was hopeful that a fair settlement would be reached. There were no immediate statements on the reported tariff exemptions or the companies being surveyed from the country’s commerce and customs ministries.
In the midst of the complicated trade relationship a major East Asian power has with the United States, there has been some news. The government of the populous country has maintain a list of exact US products that will be free from the 125% tariffs previously placed on them. This decision, accepted in the corridors of power of this republic, is yet another attempt to calculate the cost of the trade relations with Washington. Reports say that in this East Asian state the authorities are still using a mechanism of private notifications — informing companies this new tariff policy is applicable — about the directive in terms of relevant goods and the sectors which depend on US technologies.
Concurrently with this modification of tariffs, evidence suggests the economic authorities of this major player are busy evaluating wider macroeconomic impacts of the trade war. According to reports, surveys are being undertaken of businesses to provide “an estimate of how tariffs are working and to identify key situations,” and “to determine a general classification for a specific case.” It highlights a deliberate ongoing effort to evaluate and manage the negative consequences of the trade dispute on various sectors of the domestic economy, which is in addition to the sectoral exemptions from tariffs.
These steps taken by the responsible authorities indicate a sense of strategy. This global trading giant has few options at this point, to be sure — though it is finding creative, if somewhat lower profile, ways to ensure modest relief to particular sectors and firms directly suffering from the trade dispute — all while maintaining a quasi-public front of a strong, united and somewhat uncompromising position in the trade negotiations with the United States. Such dualism gives the economic leadership a path that is complex enough to traverse all other aspects of this art, while still inescapably domestic in nature and political handling ability.
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