China calls on US to remain ‘cool-headed’ over trade war

Students to learn financial literacy

CHINA’S top envoy called on the United States to remain “coolheaded” Thursday as Washington threatened to raise the tariff rate on the next $200 billion of Chinese imports.

Slapping additional tariffs on Chinese imports – 60 percent of which are made by foreign firms, including American companies – will only raise costs for domestic US consumers, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

“We hope that the trade policy makers in the United States will be coolheaded and listen to the voice of US consumers... and also pay attention to the voice in the international community,” Wang said.

“The US has no regard for the world... playing both soft and hard ball with China will not have any effect, and only serve to disappoint the countries and territories opposed to a trade war,” China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement, adding that it still hopes to turn the situation around.

President Donald Trump asked the US Trade Representative to consider increasing the proposed tariffs to 25 percent from the planned 10 percent, USTR Robert Lighthizer said on Wednesday.

“We have been very clear about the specific changes China should undertake. Regrettably, instead of changing its harmful behaviour, China has illegally retaliated against US workers, farmers, ranchers and businesses,” Lighthizer said in a statement.

Officials, however, downplayed suggestions the move was intended to compensate for the recent decline in the value of the Chinese currency, which has threatened to take much of the sting out of Trump’s tariffs by making imports cheaper.

The US dollar has been strengthening since April as the central bank has been raising lending rates, which draws investors looking for higher returns.

Washington and Beijing are locked in battle over American accusations that China’s export economy benefits from unfair policies and subsidies, as well as theft of American technological knowhow.

Trump has threatened to slap tariffs on virtually all of China’s exports to the United States.

Officials said they remained in regular contact with their Chinese counterparts but could announce no new meeting.

Wang, who is in Singapore for a foreign ministers’ meeting, said the spat will not affect diplomatic cooperation with Washington on North Korea.

In a tweet last month, US President Donald Trump suggested that China could be undermining a North Korean denuclearisation deal because of the ongoing trade war. CAMBODIAN students from grade 1 to 12 will begin studying basic financial skills starting in the 2019 academic year as the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) is now finalising the curriculum.

NBC director-general Chea Serey said Thursday that the new curriculum would help boost the students’ financial literacy at an early age.

While no new subject will be added to the existing national curriculum, Serey said financial literacy topics will be embedded into subjects like mathematics, home economics, social studies, life skills and civics.

“From next year onward, young students from grade 1 to 12 will have a better understanding of financial topics such as interest rate calculation, the definition of a loan, saving concepts, and many others,” she said.

According to Serey, the next phase is to have texts written and to train teachers, after which the project will be officially launched.

While the key stakeholders in the process are the NBC and MoEYS, the project also received technical and financial support from partners such as the Asian Development Bank, Good Return and World Education Cambodia.