Asia

Members of the World Trade Organization on Monday implored the United States to show leadership in helping to reform the organization it was instrumental in founding rather than play a disruptive role that has led some to believe the WTO is headed toward permanent paralysis.

GENEVA -- Some World Trade Organization members -- including China -- are linking progress on reforms in areas like state-owned enterprises, industrial subsidies and forced technology transfer to talks on agricultural subsidies, which have long been deadlocked at the WTO, according to Geneva sources.

“If they don't buy our soybeans, they get inflation. They get riots in Tiananmen Square.”

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-IA) would support President Trump's intervention into the controversial case of Huawei Technologies' chief financial officer, arrested in Canada earlier this month, if it facilitated trade negotiations between the U.S. and China, he told Inside U.S. Trade on Wednesday.

GENEVA – The Chinese ambassador to the World Trade Organization on Tuesday warned members not to discriminate against Chinese state-owned enterprises, suggesting that some countries were intent on conflating Chinese SOEs with “public bodies.”

While some members of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday expressed qualified support for the administration's approach to China, several said they had not been briefed on U.S. plans for crucial talks over the next 90 days.

A U.S.-Japan free trade deal should include adequate currency protections, address differences in vehicle standards and facilitate smoother customs procedures, industry representatives said during a Monday hearing on potential negotiating objectives.

USTR: “Great news today! ... This improved deal is a great achievement for our nations and workers.”

The Asia Reassurance Initiative Act would authorize penalties for IP theft, promote bilateral deals and boost energy exports.