The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
U.S. to confront trade partners at global finance meeting
Gathering a chance for U.S. finance chief to clarify nation’s stance.
FRANKFURT, GERMANY — U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to get tough on trade partners like China, Mexico and Germany. Now his Treasury chief, Steven Mnuchin, will get his first opportunity to confront them all in one room.
The meeting of the most powerful economies’ finance ministers in Germany this week is likely to be dominated by talk about whether to commit to free trade, as previous meetings have — or implicitly accept that some countries may put up barriers, like tariffs, as Trump has promised.
The Group of 20 — 19 countries worth most of the global economy, plus the EU — are also due to discuss their longstanding ban on manipulating currencies to gain economic advantage. Weakening a currency can help a country’s exporters, but can also end up dumping its troubles with business costs and competitiveness on its trade partners.
The gathering today and Saturday in the southern German resort town of Baden-Baden will help set the tone for international commerce and finance and will give Mnuchin a chance to clarify what the U.S. position is.
The focus will be on the final statement issued jointly by the finance ministers on Saturday.
Last year’s gathering of the Group of 20 finance ministers in Chengdu, China, issued a statement opposing “all forms of protectionism.” This time, such language could be softened to refer to trade that is “open” and “fair,” without the absolute opposition to import restrictions to benefit domestic workers.
Trump has repeatedly emphasized that the U.S. needs a tougher approach to trade that would put American workers and companies first. He has already pulled the U.S. out of the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement with Japan and other Pacific Rim countries and he has started the process to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada, both of whom are G-20 members.
Additionally, Britain is preparing to pull out of the European Union and its free-trade zone that permits cross border business without import and export taxes, or tariffs, after voters chose to leave in a referendum last year.
“We are committed to open and fair trade,” said a senior U.S. Treasury official this week, who briefed reporters only on condition of anonymity to discuss the U.S. position ahead of the talks. “That means a trading system that has a level playing field for our firms and our workers globally.”