China is still engaging in the unfair and unreasonable trade practices that set off the recent trade fight with the United States, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Wednesday.
The trade representative’s office published a 50-page update on its March study that accused Beijing of using a variety of tactics to force U.S. companies to hand-over technology to Chinese rivals. The report describes how China has clung to these practices despite rising U.S. tariffs and its self-professed desire to avoid a trade war.
“China has not fundamentally altered its unfair, unreasonable and market-distorting practices,” Lighthizer said in a news release.
China shows no sign of ceasing its policy and practice of conducting and supporting cyberenabled theft and intrusions into the commercial networks of U.S. companies. This illicit conduct provides the Chinese government with unauthorized access to intellectual property, trade secrets, confidential business information, technical data, negotiating positions, and sensitive and proprietary internal business communications.
After China repeatedly failed to respond to the Trump administration’s demands that it change its practice, the administration imposed tariffs on Chinese exports. When the initial $50 billion round of tariffs was met with retaliation, the Trump administration raised tariffs on another $200 billion of Chinese goods.
The new report comes just two weeks before President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with Chinese dictator Xi Jinping in Buenos Aires at a summit of the Group of 20 nations.
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