China warns of probes into US firms in retaliation for Donald Trump's vitriol
Time：2017-01-10
Browse：239
These steps would only be carried out if US President-elect Donald Trump takes punitive measures against Chinese products and triggers a trade war between the world`s top two economies after he takes office.
In response to Bloomberg enquiries, China`s Vice Minister of Commerce Wang Shouwen touted the benefits of maintaining good bilateral relations, saying that US investments have not only helped Chinese employment but have also led to immense wealth for American companies.
"I believe win-win economic ties between the two nations will keep moving forward," Mr Wang said. "No one wants a lose-lose scenario, and no one will want to harm the win-win ties. I`m still optimistic about future China-US economic relations."
Mr Wang also said the Ministry of Commerce will seek to level the playing field for foreign companies pitching to win government contracts and that it wouldn`t discriminate against foreign companies` products made in China.
The comments come in the wake of Mr Trump`s ongoing criticism of China international trade tactics and has nominated trade-related officials that the Communist Party`s Global Times newspaper said would form an "iron curtain" of protectionism, reported Bloomberg.
Any retaliation by China against Mr Trump could be risky. A backlash may result in China damaging access to its biggest trading partner, according to the head of financial markets research at Rabobank Group in Hong Kong, Michael Every.
"When you have a country with a large trade deficit that retaliates against a country with a large trade surplus with it, it`s the country with the trade deficit that wins," said Mr Every. "The country with the surplus loses, every time.
America`s trade deficit with China narrowed to US$31.1 billion from $32.5 billion in October as US exports to the nation were the strongest since December 2013, bringing the trade deficit to $288.78 billion for the ten months to the end of October.