● Pending US decisions on technology-focused export controls will signal the breadth and depth of future economic decoupling.
● The debate within the Trump administration is pitting national-security hardliners against the pro-business faction.… Read the rest
● China’s historical efforts to appropriate foreign IP have achieved uneven results.
● Phase 1 largely re-commits China to reforms that Beijing had already undertaken prior to the deal.
● The most significant new elements in phase 1 are focused on implementation and enforcement of existing rules.… Read the rest
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade, and Industry Hiroshi Kajiyama, and European Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan issued a joint statement on 14 January that suggested the three parties had made progress in forging a joint proposal for upgrading World Trade Organization (WTO) rules to combat anticompetitive industrial subsidies.… Read the rest
● Phase 1 deal probably marks the end of the tariff phase of US-China competition.
● China’s purchase commitments could spark tensions with China’s non-US trading partners who will suffer from lost exports.… Read the rest
