US Treasury Secretary Yellen meets foreign business leaders in China ahead of trade talks

GUANGZHOU – U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen kicked off a trip to China on Friday with a morning assembly to listen to the troubles of American, European and Japanese business representatives in the arena’s second-largest economic system, ahead of what is going to most likely be tricky talks on trade and different problems with senior Chinese executive officers.

Yellen, the primary Cabinet-level authentic to talk over with China since President Joe Biden met Chinese chief Xi Jinping remaining November, shook arms with the heads of the American and European chambers of trade in China after arriving for the assembly in the southern business hub of Guangzhou.

She has telegraphed that she’s going to press issues right through her five-day China shuttle about what the U.S. considers unfair Chinese trade practices, a priority shared by way of many European nations.

Eswar Prasad, a trade professor at Cornell University, expects Yellen to push Beijing to strengthen home intake and make sure truthful pageant in new era sectors, particularly inexperienced power and electrical automobiles, along side good enough marketplace get admission to for U.S. firms.

“Concerns about China attempting to export its overcapacity and simultaneously making a big push into these sectors will be top of mind for the U.S. delegation,” he said.

China has pushed back against the overcapacity concerns expressed by both the U.S. and Europe.

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said earlier this week that the growth in Chinese EV and solar exports is conducive to green development globally and the result of the international division of labor and market demand.

He accused the U.S. of interfering with free trade by restricting technology exports to China.

“As for who is doing non-market manipulation, the fact is for everyone to see,” he mentioned. “The U.S. has not stopped taking measures to contain China’s trade and technology. This is not ‘de-risking,’ rather, it is creating risks.”