Further to our recent news article “Is the US-China Trade Relationship in Jeopardy?” the US has now launched an official investigation into China’s use of ‘intellectual property.’ The US-China Trade Relationship appears to be in trouble regarding China’s use of counterfeit goods and pirated software.
US President Donald Trump asked Robert Lighthizer, a top US trade official, to have a look at these concerns. Lighthizer, not unsurprisingly, decide that the issues certainly ‘merited a thorough investigation.’ China is ‘seriously concerned’ about this, and the inquiry could result in trade sanctions against the US. It is said that such pirating, trade secrets theft and counterfeiting of goods could cost the US up to $600 billion each year.
That’s a lot of money, it’s true. But what are the consequences of such a move to the US-China Trade Relationship? It seems almost certain to US authorities that the investigation will come across Chinese misdeeds. But how will Donald Trump proceed then? There are more issues at stake than just punishing the Chinese – and if so, how? There is more to international diplomacy than carrying out investigations and then punishing the miscreant country.
What is that country is one of the most powerful in the world? What if your own country relies on it for trade – both imports and exports? Some believe that such activities have been taking place worldwide for decades. So why complain now? The US will set up an investigation committee that will hold a hearing in October – a component of the so-called Section 301 investigation.
The US might penalize certain companies that have been involved in such actions. It may alternatively report such firms to the World Trade Organization. This is a dangerous move by the US against activities that both countries have perhaps been involved in for some time. The Chinese commerce minister stated on Tuesday that “China will not sit idle” if the US does anything to ‘impair the China-US trade relationship.’ It’s going to be an interesting few weeks!
Pvt. Ltd.
