Three signs from APEC that the US and China remain far apart on trade
Despite the joint communique closing the APEC leaders' summit in Gyeongju, three core trade fault lines between the US and China remain unresolved. Technical conditions of the 200-jet Boeing pledge, semiconductor export curbs and rare earths dominate the gap. Public statements at the closing summit struck a tense tone.
Despite the joint communique endorsed by 21 member economies at the close of the APEC leaders' summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, core tensions in US-China trade relations have not been resolved. CNBC reports three concrete points of friction. The first is the stalled negotiation over the technical conditions of Beijing's pledge to purchase 200 Boeing aircraft from the US.
The second is the US Commerce Department's indecision on reviewing advanced semiconductor export curbs to China; companies including Nvidia and AMD have flagged commercial uncertainty. The third and most critical issue is China's reluctance to ease its export control regime on strategically vital rare earth elements and magnetic materials. Charles Edel, director of the Asia Program at CSIS, observed that 'the joint communique is a rhetorical concession; the real economic dynamics have not changed'.
US Trade Representative Greer held a separate meeting on the summit sidelines with China's Commerce Minister Wang Wentao, but no concrete agreement was announced. The statement by Chinese Vice Premier Han Zheng at the closing summit lacked the expected warmth. In the coming weeks, whether the Boeing order is signed in September will be the real test of any US-China commercial thaw.
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