Why intellectual property rights will be pivotal in US-China trade talks
Beijing is offering to buy more US products to eliminate the trade deficit, but will Washington accept a deal based on purchases, not structural reform?
Washington — US-China trade talks will reach a pivotal phase this week when Chinese vice-premier Liu He goes to Washington for negotiations with his US counterparts, US trade representative Robert Lighthizer and US treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin. The two sides are trying to resolve deep differences over China’s trade and intellectual property practices, industrial subsidies and market access to avert an increase in US tariffs on Chinese goods scheduled for March 2. Here is a look at the key issues in the talks and their implications: What are Washington and Beijing fighting about? After years of steadily rising US trade deficits with China and US complaints that Beijing has systematically obtained American intellectual property and trade secrets through coercion and outright theft, the Trump administration last year demanded fundamental changes to China’s economic model to allow US companies to compete on a more level playing field. These include an end to policies that Washingto...
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