US plans probe over China’s demands for tech transfers
Govt could invoke rarely used section of Trade Act 1974
The Trump administration is weighing plans to punish China for forcing US and foreign companies to share their technology in return for access to the vast Chinese market, a person familiar with US discussions said yesterday.
The administration is considering invoking the rarely used Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, which empowers Washington to investigate Chinese trade practices and impose sanctions, including tariffs, within months, said the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans have not been made public.
The investigation would focus on China’s alleged “forced technology transfer policies and practices,” the person said, adding that the Trump administration could move to launch such a probe this week.
U.S. and other Western governments and business groups accuse Beijing of unfairly nurturing Chinese competitors - in fields ranging from medical equipment to renewable energy to electric cars - by requiring foreign firms to hand over proprietary technologies in exchange for being allowed to operate in China.
China’s Ministry of Commerce did not immediately respond to a faxed request for comment. These deliberations come as the administration signals a harsher stance on trade than it took in the first six months of Trump’s presidency. Trump temporarily set aside complaints about market access and currency when he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in April in hopes Beijing would help pressure North Korea to end its nuclear weapons development. But tensions bubbled up last month at a US-Chinese dialogue where US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin blamed China’s $347 billion trade surplus with the United States last year on “government intervention in its economy.”
The Wall Street Journal and New York Times also reported that US trade officials are discussing ways to counter piracy of copyrights and patents and other intellectual property in China. US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, in a commentary in Tuesday’s Wall Street Journal, outlined a slew of grievances against both China and the European Union that he said contributed to the global US trade deficit in goods of $725.5 billion in 2016.
“Both China and Europe also bankroll their exports through grants, low-cost loans, energy subsidies, special value-added tax refunds and below-market real estate sales, among other means,” Ross wrote.
The Wall Street Journal and New York Times stories also said US officials were looking into using Section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act. Another possibility would be to invoke the “International Emergency Economic Powers Act,” a law also enacted during the 1970s that gives the president wide powers to take action after declaring a national emergency, the Wall Street Journal report said. The administration also was considering how to resist technology-sharing demands from Beijing as part of its ambitious Made in China 2025 program, a blueprint for making China a leader in advanced technologies such as autonomous driving, artificial intelligence, robotics and other industries.
Foreign companies have long complained over rampant piracy and technology theft by Chinese companies. Though he has at times sought a more conciliatory approach, Trump also has lambasted China over such problems and over the massive US trade deficit.