Canada Global (Web News) Despite indications that China is continuing to reduce its reliance on American goods, Shu Jueting, a spokesperson for the commerce ministry, claimed on Thursday that China has never purposefully sought a trade surplus with the United States.
According to a new research from the Peterson Institute for International Economics, although American export statistics released on February 7 shows that shipments to China climbed by $2.4 billion for the year to set a “record high” of $153.8 billion in 2022, that is a “empty assertion” (PIIE). It notes that the main cause of this figure is inflation.
In response to a question about whether Chinese officials should be concerned that China’s growing trade surplus with the US will stymie efforts to lower US tariffs on Chinese goods, Shu said the US should “lift trade restrictions on Chinese enterprises as soon as possible.”
She stated that this was required to “create the conditions for firms on both sides to improve trade cooperation and reduce the trade deficit through conversation.”
In 2022, the goods trade deficit with China increased by $29.4 billion to $382.9 billion.
“Based on market demand, Chinese firms import a considerable amount of agricultural items, autos, research and technology, energy, and petrochemical products,” Shu noted, stating that “China’s exports have decreased inflation in the US.”
Newly revealed data from 2022, according to PIIE researchers, “suggest that US exports are lagging behind their overseas peers selling into the Chinese market by an increasing margin.”
Since the US-China Phase One Trade Agreement expires at the end of 2021, trade tensions between the two countries have been boiling.
