China urges U.S. to treat Chinese companies fairly
Updated 18:05, 27-Jun-2019
CGTN
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China calls for fair treatment to Chinese enterprises, China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) spokesperson Gao Feng said on Thursday.

The country opposes U.S. abuse of export controls and urges the U.S. to return to a track of cooperation, immediately halting the suppression of Chinese companies listed on the entity list including Huawei, so as to promote the healthy development of global trade.

China will consider putting foreign firms on a list designating them as “unreliable” if they adopt discriminatory measures against Chinese entities, operate for others rather than commercial reasons, hurt its industries and threaten its national security, Gao said.

Based on the commerce ministry, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin agreed to continue to maintain contact on economic and trade issues in line with the instructions made by the two heads of state in Monday's telephone conversation, preparing for the scheduled bilateral meeting during the G20 summit in Japan.

China welcomed actions that helped reduce tension, insisting its three core concerns on additional tariffs, agreed upon purchases, and the balance of the wording of the text must be addressed, Gao affirmed.

VCG Photo

VCG Photo

"Cooperation is the only right way for China and the U.S.," the spokesperson commented, hoping the U.S. side can listen to its business opinions and solve the problem through dialogue on an equal footing and working together.

Seven days of public hearings on the impact of potential tariffs on Chinese imports valued at 300 billion U.S. dollars came to a close in Washington on Tuesday.

"No more tariffs, please" was sent by 303 representatives, namely over 90 percent of attendees from a range of U.S. businesses to the Trump administration, with the voice that additional tariffs would do damage to jobs, the economy and consumers of the U.S., the spokesperson said.

According to MOFCOM, a report from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows that continuous additional tariffs will leave the U.S. economy exposed to one trillion U.S. dollars of losses in 10 years.

Also, U.S. consumers will possibly pay an extra 4.4 billion U.S. dollars for clothing, 2.5 billion U.S. dollars for shoes, 3.7 billion U.S. dollars for toys as well as 1.6 billion U.S. dollars for household goods a year thanks to potential tariffs, according to data from the U.S. National Retail Federation.

"Most industry associations and companies of U.S. reckoned that possessing integrated industry chain, improved infrastructure and not only sufficient but efficient labor, China has an irreplaceable advantage in the supply chain, and it's not feasible for them to move their manufacturing out of China," Gao said.