China hopes U.S. will create conditions
to implement Phase 1 deal, commerce official says
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[August 13, 2020]
BEIJING (Reuters) - China hopes the
United States will stop taking restrictive and discriminatory action
against Chinese firms and create conditions for the implementation of a
Phase 1 trade deal, Assistant Minister of Commerce Ren Hongbin said on
Thursday. |
The flags of China, U.S. and the Chinese Communist Party are displayed
in a flag stall at the Yiwu Wholesale Market in Yiwu, Zhejiang province,
China, May 10, 2019. REUTERS/Aly Song |
Senior U.S. and Chinese officials are due to review the deal
during a video conference this weekend, and are likely to air
grievances in an increasingly tense relationship.
Ren told a news conference that the coronavirus pandemic and
U.S. export control measures had undoubtedly had an impact on
Chinese purchases of U.S. goods and services.
In January-July, Chinese imports from the United States fell
3.5% from a year earlier, falling short of the commitments made
in the Phase 1 trade deal to increase purchases of American
goods.
"Under the current situation, it is required that the both sides
need to work together and step up cooperation to overcome the
difficult times," said Ren.
"We hope U.S. would stop taking any restrictions and
discriminatory action against Chinese companies and create
conditions for the implementation of the Phase 1 trade
agreement."
U.S.-China tensions have been rapidly escalating ahead of the
United States presidential election in November. President
Donald Trump has unveiled sweeping bans on U.S. transactions
with the Chinese owners of messaging app WeChat and
video-sharing app TikTok.
(Reporting by Martin Pollard and Stella Qiu; Editing by
Catherine Evans and Alex Richardson)
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