China confirms plans to sign proposed ‘phase one’ trade deal with US

US President Donald Trump is expected to sign a preliminary trade agreement between the US and China on 15 January 2020, cementing a deal that could lessen trade tensions that have weighed on global markets. China confirmed that Vice Premier Liu He was scheduled to travel to Washington to participate in a signing ceremony.

Under the deal, China would boost imports from the US and pledged to protect intellectual property rights better. The Trump administration agreed to suspend planned tariff escalations in October on US$156 billion of Chinese goods and halve a 15% US tariff on US$120 billion of Chinese imports.

The two sides have not released the 86-page phase-one deal, but the White House said it secured certain commitments from China. Those included pledges for stricter rules around intellectual property protections and currency movements, as well as increased financial sector access for US firms. It is understood that China had also agreed to dramatically increase its imports of US farm products.

The Trump administration has said that after the first stage is signed, trade negotiators would begin working toward a more comprehensive trade agreement.

China has pledged to improve market access for foreign investors and better protect their rights in the face of growing complaints and slower foreign investment. It has drafted a new foreign investment law that would prohibit forced technology transfers and illegal government ‘interference’ in foreign business operations, practices that have come under the spotlight in its trade dispute with the US.

The final draft law says: “Official authorities and their staff shall not use administrative means to force the transfer of technology.” This is a much stronger stance than the general statement issued in 2015 that foreign firms’ IP rights would be protected.

Disclaimer
The information on this page may have been provided by a contributor to ChinaGoAbroad, and ChinaGoAbroad makes no guarantees about the accuracy of any content. All content shall be used for informational purposes only. Contributors must obtain all necessary licenses and/or ownership rights from the relevant content owner(s) before submitting such content (including texts, pictures, photos and diagrams) to ChinaGoAbroad for publication. ChinaGoAbroad disclaims all liability arising from the publication of any content/information (such as texts, pictures, photos and diagrams that infringe on any copyright) received from contributors. Links may direct to third party sites out of the control of ChinaGoAbroad, and such links shall not be considered an endorsement by ChinaGoAbroad of any information contained on such third party sites. Please refer to our Disclaimer for more details.
Top