United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the United States’ economic relationship with China is “stable” ahead of President Donald Trump’s meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
Greer, who is tasked with leading U.S. trade policy and implementing Trump’s tariff agenda, made the remarks on Tuesday during an event at the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C. There has been friction between Washington and Beijing over tariffs.
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“So right now, with the United States and China, I would characterize our economic and trade relationship as stable,” Greer told a crowd of several dozen people. “I know that’s a boring word. I know it’s a word you’ve heard me and others say before, but that’s what it is right now.”
Greer said that Trump and other officials are hoping to avoid confrontation with China on trade, but said that national security needs and economic security are crucial.
“The alternative, I don’t think, is one that people want to deal with right now, which is what we are not looking for, is massive confrontation or anything like that,” he said. “At the same time, we have to protect our national security. We have to protect our economic security.”
“We’ve settled into a stable situation with the Chinese, where the United States continues to maintain substantial tariffs on Chinese goods, primarily on a lot of the advanced goods and a lot of the manufacturing,” Greer added.
The U.S. imposes a complicated web of tariffs on products from China. While a recent Supreme Court ruling voided tariffs imposed under emergency economic powers, Trump has applied a temporary global tariff of 10% to 15%.
There is also a 50% tariff on Chinese steel and aluminum products, as well as semi-finished copper products, under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act. Under the same authority, there are 25% tariffs on Chinese automobiles.
Certain Chinese chemical products, as well as animal and vegetable products, have tariffs imposed under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to investigate and apply tariffs if there are unfair trade practices by the other country.
The president will be meeting Xi in China in mid-May, during which a variety of issues will be discussed. His original visit was delayed after the war with Iran began on Feb. 28.
Greer on Tuesday said that, heading into the historic meeting in China, the goal is to ensure the stability the two countries are currently experiencing continues.
“When we think about what to expect for the president’s meeting in [May], we’re looking to maintain that stability,” Greer said. “We’re looking to ensure we can continue to get rare earths from the Chinese.”
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During the event on Tuesday, Greer also mentioned talks of forming a trade board between the countries. He said U.S.-China Board of Trade could help with bilateral trade matters.
“But we’re looking at that kind of mechanism, where we can work with the Chinese to figure out what are the non-sensitive goods we should be trading with each other, get a handle on that, figure out what those flows should look like, and then you’re in a better position to talk about stickier issues,” he said.
