Beijing (AFP) – China’s number two leader told a gathering of business executives in Beijing on Sunday that the country would pursue economic globalisation despite “fragmentation”, a thinly veiled reference to trade turmoil sparked by US President Donald Trump. The China Development Forum convenes after weeks that have seen Trump slap multiple rounds of tariffs on goods from the country, threatening a vital lifeline as economic challenges persist.
Chinese leaders have been attempting to steer a shaky economy onto a more stable path since the end of the pandemic, particularly by boosting consumption. They are also now seeking to assert the country’s role as a staunch defender of the multilateral economic system, as Trump wages tariff wars with major US trading partners including China, Canada and Mexico. “China will firmly stand on the correct side of history, that of fairness and justice, and act in a righteous manner amid the rough waters of the times,” Premier Li Qiang said.
Li’s speech came at the opening of the annual forum, attended this year by prominent business leaders including Apple CEO Tim Cook. The country will “adhere to the correct direction of economic globalisation, practice true multilateralism and strive to be a force for stability and certainty,” Li vowed. And in apparent reference to renewed trade wars sparked by Trump, he added: “today, global economic fragmentation is intensifying”, while “instability and uncertainty are on the rise”.
Beijing has in recent weeks expressed an open attitude towards engaging with Trump for trade talks. US Senator Steve Daines on Sunday afternoon met with Li during a visit to Beijing viewed as a bid to ease strained relations between the two countries. Joining the Montana Republican for talks in Beijing’s grandiose Great Hall of the People were the CEOs of major firms including FedEx, Pfizer and Qualcomm. Daines’s engagement with Chinese leaders also included a Saturday meeting with Vice Premier He Lifeng, a close advisor to President Xi Jinping on economic matters. The discussions in Beijing were expected to focus in large part on the flow of the deadly drug fentanyl and its precursor chemicals from China into the United States.
Trump says his new tariffs on China are due to Beijing’s failure to stem shipments of the chemicals, which underpin a devastating drug crisis. Beijing has insisted that it cracks down harshly on the illicit production and trade of drugs, describing the issue as one for Washington itself to solve. During his meeting with Daines on Saturday, He said China “firmly opposes the politicisation, weaponisation and instrumentalisation of economic and trade issues”. The vice premier added that China was willing to “engage in candid dialogue” with the United States to resolve issues. The two countries have “many common interests and broad space for cooperation,” he added.
The tariffs imposed by Trump since taking office in January amount to a 20 percent blanket hike on Chinese overseas shipments to the United States. The country’s exports reached record heights last year, but observers warn that turbulence in the global trading system could force Beijing to find other ways to boost activity. Data released Monday indicated an uneven recovery during the first two months of the year. Retail sales charted a moderate increase from the previous January-February period, though unemployment rose to its highest level in two years. Beijing says it is targeting growth this year of around five percent — the same as last year and a goal considered ambitious by many economists.
© 2024 AFP
