In an unusual move, the Chinese government is directly encouraging American businesses to defuse tariffs fight
BEIJING — China tried to step up pressure on the U. S. Thursday by suggesting American companies appeal to congressional lawmakers to stave off the burgeoning trade war between the two nations.
« We hope American companies do more to lobby the U. S. government and work hard to safeguard their own interests, » said Gao Feng, a spokesman for the Chinese Commerce Ministry, at a news conference.
Beijing and Washington have yet to resume negotiations over the dispute that led to tariff hikes on each other’s goods last week, Gao said.
While some U. S. companies and lawmakers have criticized Trump’s tactics, Gao’s statement was an unusually direct attempt to rouse domestic American opposition. Beijing frequently rejects foreign comments about its own policies as improper interference in its affairs.
Gao gave no details. His remark about lobbying was missing from an official transcript on the ministry’s website, suggesting officials recognized its potential sensitivity.
The Trump administration imposed a 25 percent tariff on $34 billion of Chinese goods Friday in response to complaints Beijing steals or pressures companies to hand over technology. Beijing responded by imposing similar duties on the same amount of imports from the United States.
Washington announced a second possible round of tariff hikes Tuesday targeting a wider range of $200 billion of goods. Beijing vowed « firm and forceful measures » in response, but China’s lopsided trade balance means it cannot match the full scale of American tariff hikes. That has prompted concern regulators might expand retaliation in other ways, such as by hampering operations of American companies in China.
Chinese leaders have tried to deflect criticism by pointing to the benefits of trading with the world’s second-largest economy, a theme Gao repeated Thursday.
