China’s Li appeals to Washington to avoid trade war

BEIJING — China’s number two leader expressed hope on Tuesday that disputes with United States President Donald Trump’s government can be settled amicably and warned a “trade war would benefit nobody”.

Despite Mr Trump’s promises to raise duties on Chinese goods, Premier Li Keqiang said Beijing has a “stable, optimistic outlook’’ on trade with the US.

Mr Li took the unusual step of making an impromptu statement to reporters during an appearance with his French counterpart, Bernard Cazeneuve.

“Let the figures do the talking,’’ the Premier said, citing American jobs supported by US-Chinese trade.

“We have faith that, with mutual respect and on the model of cooperation through equality, issues of trade friction can be resolved amicably,” 

Mr Li said. “A China-US trade war would benefit nobody, (and) would not benefit the world.”

Mr Trump pledged during his election campaign to raise import duties on Chinese goods to 40 per cent but has yet to take formal action. 

He argues that the existing order has short-changed Americans by exposing them to unfair competition with low-wage foreign labourers and to unjust trade practices by China and others. His promise to raise import barriers has given Chinese leaders an opening to present themselves as champions of free trade.

In an implicit rebuke to Mr Trump, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a ringing endorsement of trade during a January speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. He appealed to world leaders to “say no to protectionism”.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Chinese Commerce Minister delivered a similar message at a news conference, appealing to Washington to cooperate in promoting trade and a global economic recovery.

Mr Gao Hucheng urged Washington to “properly solve” disputes through “dialogue and cooperation”. He argued that both sides have benefited from what has grown into the world’s biggest trading relationship.

“A trade war should not become an option,” Mr Gao said. “If the two sides fight, all will be hurt.”

No matter how US policy on China shifts, bilateral economic relations will ultimately come back to a “win-win” track, Mr Gao said. He cited past examples including the intellectual property tensions in the 1990s and currency manipulation debate in 2010 to illustrate that the countries can find common ground.

Should the US roll out specific tariff plans, China would carefully assess them and react accordingly, the minister added. The Chinese government will also use World Trade Organization rules to protect the proper and legitimate rights of Chinese companies when necessary, he said.

Mr Gao said Beijing had refrained from responding to Mr Trump earlier because it wanted to see what 
Washington does.

“We noticed various remarks made by presidential candidates during the election but didn’t want to comment too much because we wanted to see what stance the new government would take towards trade relations with China,” he said. AGENCIES