US Trade Rep. Greer: Concerned with China's non-compliance, has to be addressed
In an interview with CNBC on Friday, United States Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer said that they are concerned with China's non-compliance and added that this situation has to be addressed, per Reuters.
Key takeaways
"We have other tools if the tariff ruling goes the other way as well."
"Had emails and texts from foreign officials saying they are just going to keep negotiating with us as before."
"We've been focused on monitoring Chinese compliance or in this case non-compliance with the agreement."
"We have a standing call with the Indian trade minister every day."
"We have meetings next week at the OECD with, with the Malaysians, the Vietnamese, the EU."
"When it comes to the trade deficit, China's the biggest problem, but the EU is right behind them."
Market reaction
The US Dollar struggles to gather strength following these comments. As of writing, the US Dollar Index was little changed on the day at 99.38.
US-China Trade War FAQs
Generally speaking, a trade war is an economic conflict between two or more countries due to extreme protectionism on one end. It implies the creation of trade barriers, such as tariffs, which result in counter-barriers, escalating import costs, and hence the cost of living.
An economic conflict between the United States (US) and China began early in 2018, when President Donald Trump set trade barriers on China, claiming unfair commercial practices and intellectual property theft from the Asian giant. China took retaliatory action, imposing tariffs on multiple US goods, such as automobiles and soybeans. Tensions escalated until the two countries signed the US-China Phase One trade deal in January 2020. The agreement required structural reforms and other changes to China’s economic and trade regime and pretended to restore stability and trust between the two nations. However, the Coronavirus pandemic took the focus out of the conflict. Yet, it is worth mentioning that President Joe Biden, who took office after Trump, kept tariffs in place and even added some additional levies.
The return of Donald Trump to the White House as the 47th US President has sparked a fresh wave of tensions between the two countries. During the 2024 election campaign, Trump pledged to impose 60% tariffs on China once he returned to office, which he did on January 20, 2025. With Trump back, the US-China trade war is meant to resume where it was left, with tit-for-tat policies affecting the global economic landscape amid disruptions in global supply chains, resulting in a reduction in spending, particularly investment, and directly feeding into the Consumer Price Index inflation.
Author
Eren Sengezer
FXStreet
As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.
