Equal-footed dialogue is the only way for win-win cooperation
By Wu Yuehe
What does Washington’s imposition
on $300 billion worth of more imported Chinese goods mean to the American people?
The possible price hikes of
consumer goods, such as mobile phones, laptops, clothing, footwear, toys and
gaming equipment will make American enterprises and consumers feel worried
because their days will be different.
On June 17, the Office of the
U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) kicked off a seven-day hearing, seemingly respecting
public opinion. Such hearings have been held several times since the U.S. provoked
the trade dispute with China.
However, it seems that tariffs
will still be the trend, though they may lead to an increase in commodity
prices, impact employment and disrupt corporation supply chains, as stated by industry
representatives in their speeches during the hearings and the letters of
opposition submitted to the USTR before each hearing.
So far, Washington has slapped
25% tariffs on $250 billion of Chinese goods.
During this round of hearings,
the USTR received more than 2,000 written comments and talked with about 300
company and industry representatives. Some research institutes even testified
with analytical data.
Consulting firm Trade Partnership
Worldwide, LLC. said in a report prepared for the U.S. Consumer Technology
Association that if the new tariffs were imposed, American consumers would pay
over $8.1 billion more for cell phones and over $8.2 billion more for laptops
and tablets.
China accounted for about 75
percent of the total cell phones and over 90 percent of the total laptops and
tablets imported into the U.S., according to Trade Partnership Worldwide.
On any alternative location for
production such as the U.S. and any alternative supplier, the American small
business owners said earnestly that there is no other viable alternative. Some
of them even cried worrying about what they are going to face.
Some large American enterprises
have written letters to the government, asking the latter to bring the tariffs
to an end.
"We urge the U.S. government
not to impose tariffs on these products," Apple Inc. said in a letter to
the U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.
The company said it's responsible
for 2 million jobs in the U.S. and reminded the government that it had pledged
to invest $350 billion in the American economy over five years.
The U.S. government's tariff
increase will affect all its products, impact its global competitiveness, and
reduce its U.S. economic contribution, Apple said.
The painful truth is that
American people are not the one to make decisions. The decision makers,
however, disappointed them again and again.
"If there's a better idea
than tariffs I'd like to hear it. I haven't heard it," Lighthizer told
Senate Finance Committee at a congress hearing.
To justify the trade dispute they
provoked, some American politicians said they did so to protect people’s livelihood,
but the truth is that they never paid attention to the interests of the
American people.
The American consumers have to
shoulder the burden of higher spending associated with rising consumer prices,
and the companies have to spend more because their global supply chains are
disrupted.
The U.S. politicians are waving
the tariff stick in an attempt to strengthen their so-called "industrial
competitive advantage" without considering public opinion, national
conditions, and the international economic order.
Claiming that they want to win
the trade war, the American politicians can't see the truth that they just
won’t win at all. The international division of labor is not deliberately
designed by any country, but by the laws of the market, in the context of
economic globalization.
To gain benefits, one has to be
righteous. Dialogue is the only way to resolve economic and trade issues
between countries.
If the U.S. insists on escalating
the trade war with no consideration of the interests of its own people, China
will have to fight with it to the end.
China is resilient and can afford
a trade war. If Washington chooses to talk, then it should talk with sincerity.
The key for negotiation is to take care of each other's legitimate concerns. In
this regard, the U.S. must put a stop to tariffs imposed on Chinese products.
It should also be aware that only mutual benefit and win-win cooperation could
win support and confirms to the trend of the times.
Equal-footed dialogue is the only way for win-win cooperation
Reviewed by PEOPLES MAIL
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