US-China Board of Trade Has No Implementation Timeline, Greer Says

United States Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said there is no timeline yet for implementing the US-China Board of Trade, a key economic outcome of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Washington last week.

Greer also said recommendations linked to the initiative must pass through a legal process before they can be implemented.

Tariff reductions described as a policy outcome

Speaking on the sidelines of the Group of 20 Trade Ministers’ meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Greer said the tariff reductions under the mechanism were “a policy outcome”.

He said the recommendations would have to go through a legal process before implementation.

The comments indicate that the Board of Trade’s recommendations have not yet moved directly into a tariff action.

Greer said the US government could put the Board of Trade recommendations out to the public.

Government may seek public input

After that, he said, there would be a “common process” in which the government could go “back and forth” before making a legal determination on whether to adopt the recommendations in a tariff action.

Greer said the process would therefore involve consideration of the recommendations before any legal determination is made.

“We have to stick to our legal processes,” he said.

The United States Trade Representative’s remarks provide no specific timeline for when the recommendations could be released publicly or when a final decision on tariff action could be taken.

The US-China Board of Trade was among the key economic outcomes associated with Xi’s state visit to Washington last week.

Source: South China Morning Post