Source: Global Times
[ Global Times Comprehensive Report] The news that "the Biden administration will announce a reduction in tariffs on some Chinese goods" has become hot again in the past two days. " Wall Street Journal " stated on the 5th that The U.S. Trade Representative's Office is conducting a mandatory four-year review of Trump-era tariffs, with the comment period for businesses and other tariff beneficiaries ending on July 5, giving the Biden administration "a Opportunities to adjust policies.” But Bloomberg quoted sources as saying that Biden has not yet made a final decision. According to reports, there are still two factions of controversy within the U.S. government. U.S. Treasury Secretary Yellen told the U.S. media that some tariffs on China during the Trump era were "not strategic" and "it is the Americans who pay the bill, not the Chinese." ”, but other U.S. officials still regard tariffs as “a valuable bargaining chip to force China to make concessions.” Engel, a senior economist at Natixis, said in an interview with Qatar's Al Jazeera that even if the United States reduces tariffs on China this week, "it is by no means a U-turn in the strategic competition between the United States and China."
Washington has repeatedly said why
"Biden will lift some tariffs on China as soon as this week." The "Wall Street Journal" reported on the 4th that the U.S. economy is currently suffering from inflation that exceeds a 40-year high, and the Biden administration has been unable to The impact of reining in high prices for food, gasoline and other consumer goods could hurt Democrats in November's midterm elections. Since controlling inflation is mainly the responsibility of the US Federal Reserve , there are not many policies available to the president, and lowering tariffs is one of them.
However, Bloomberg quoted a White House spokesperson on the 5th as saying that a decision on the tariff issue has not yet been made, and the announcement time may also change. The report also stated that the American people are demanding that the government control prices, which indeed puts considerable pressure on American officials. To this end, the possibility that the Biden administration will consider easing some tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese imports is increasing. To this end, Biden said last month that he would talk to Chinese leaders soon and said he was considering making a decision on whether to lift tariffs on China. If Biden announces the lifting of some tariffs on China, it will mark his first major policy shift in Sino-US trade relations.
The British " Financial Times " said on the 4th that although Biden is eager to help consumers, he hopes to avoid a backlash from members of Congress before the mid-term elections. These members believe that cutting tariffs is "soft on China." "It does seem very confusing in terms of the message that the tariffs are sending because different administration officials are saying very different things... I can imagine what the internal debate is like," said Kilkris, a former official in the U.S. Trade Representative's Office. "
" Deutsche Welle" said on the 5th that due to serious differences of opinion within the Biden administration and in order to check and balance trade relations with Beijing, there are still variables in the decision to reduce taxes on China, and Biden may also resort to this. Compromise.
Gao Lingyun, a researcher at the Institute of World Economics and Politics, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told a reporter from the Global Times on the 5th that the U.S. government continues to repeatedly release contradictory voices on the tariff issue. On the one hand, it has solidified serious internal differences arising from different positions, leading to It's hard to make a decision. On the other hand, this is also a consistent diplomatic tactic of the U.S. government. It releases news to the outside world to observe external reactions, and conducts repeated tests to seek judgment standards for policy decisions.
The West has entered the "era of frugality"
As India's "Business Insider" reported on the 5th, inflation is now spreading around the world like the COVID-19 epidemic. Americans are fed up with rising prices almost everywhere they spend money. Gasoline prices are near all-time highs, food and housing prices are rising month by month, "and this problem is not limited to the United States."
According to a report by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) on July 3, relatively wealthy Western countries have also begun to save energy. The Japanese government recently called on people to turn off "unnecessary lights" starting at 3 p.m. Based on the experience of a "Global Times" special correspondent who has lived in Japan for many years, saving electricity was rarely a thing in the past.Japanese people are accustomed to "showing the light". Schools usually turn on all the lights, and most families also keep the lights in all rooms on at night. Nowadays, everyone is obsessed with various details of energy saving. There are discussions on TV about energy saving methods, such as whether changing the air volume of the air conditioner from "automatic" to "breeze" can save energy. The Japanese government requires the public to save electricity from July 1 to the end of September, including households and businesses across the country.
According to the BBC report, in addition to Japan, the Australian Energy Minister urged New South Wales and Sydney to turn off the lights for two hours every night to save electricity. French officials called on the public to save electricity and natural gas as early as the end of March. German Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economics and Climate Protection Habeck called on people to shorten their bathing time to save energy. He stated in the media that he never takes a bath for more than 5 minutes.
According to the German weekly " Der Spiegel ", the natural gas used by Germans in the first five months of this year decreased by 14.3% compared with the same period last year. Many Germans told a special reporter of the Global Times that they cannot save on rent, insurance and other expenses, so they mainly save money on daily life. For example, go to restaurants less often, buy less clothes, drive less cars, cancel vacations, etc. This makes them feel "the quality of life has declined" and the business atmosphere has become colder.
The United States should be responsible for the world economy
Germany's "Wirtschaftswoche" said on the 5th that U.S. President Biden must urgently respond to rapidly rising inflation: the elimination of punitive tariffs may reduce the U.S. inflation rate by as much as two percentage points.
On June 14, 2022 local time, people were shopping in the supermarket in Washington, DC, the United States. Source: Visual China
But as Japan’s Kyodo News Agency stated on the 35th, Biden is considering reducing tariffs on China to curb high prices in the United States, while China requires the “complete abolition of tariffs.” The Wall Street Journal stated on the 5th that the scope of tariff reductions against China may include "suspension of tariffs on consumer goods such as clothing and school supplies", but at the same time the United States may launch a new investigation based on the so-called "301 clause ", "key points "In response to China's industrial subsidies for high-tech projects," the U.S. Trade Representative's Office has been "preparing for months" for this measure, which will result in new tariffs.
Bloomberg said on the 5th that China’s exports to the United States still increased by 15.1% year-on-year in the first five months of 2022. Analysts say that the removal of tariffs will not have much impact on U.S. inflation or China's trade, but the prospect of a possible recession in the world's largest economy may be a threat to the world economy.
Gao Lingyun said that the epidemic has been compounded by the impact of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and the prospects for world economic recovery have been shrouded in a haze. Against this background, the United States, as the world's largest economy, should actively abandon trade protectionism and fragment the global industrial chain. Anti-globalization practices in supply chains. "The United States should take more responsibilities from the perspective of world economic recovery, rather than just focusing on its own interests."
[Global Times reporter Ni Hao, Global Times special correspondent in Germany and Japan Shen Jason and Huang Wenwei have heavy responsibilities]
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