At the invitation of the U.S. side, Mr. Wang Shouwen, Representative for International Trade Negotiations and Vice Minister of the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM), visited the U.S. from April 2 to 5, and co-chaired the First Vice-Ministerial Meeting of the U.S.-China Working Group on Trade and Commerce with U.S. Undersecretary of Commerce Mr. Lago. Focusing on the implementation of the important consensus reached at the San Francisco meeting of the two heads of state and the recent call, the two sides conducted objective, rational, professional and pragmatic communication on the commerce and trade policy issues of their respective concern as well as specific commercial issues raised by the business communities of the two countries.
Wang Shouwen said that the San Francisco meeting between the Chinese and U.S. heads of state pointed out the direction for the development of economic and trade relations between the two countries. The recent call between the two heads of state instructed the working teams of both sides to push forward the consultation mechanism in commerce and other areas. China-US economic and trade relations should be a stabilizing force in the relationship between the two countries. China is willing to work with the U.S. side to actively implement the consensus of the two heads of state, through the China-U.S. Commerce and Trade Working Group to strengthen communication, expand cooperation, manage differences, and create a favorable environment for enterprises of the two countries to carry out trade and investment cooperation. Wang Shouwen focused on expressing concerns about the U.S. imposition of 301 tariffs on China and related 301 investigation applications, generalized national security, sanctions against Chinese enterprises, revised rules on trade remedy investigations, two-way investment restrictions, and unfair treatment of Chinese enterprises.
The two sides agreed that the Ministries of Commerce of the two countries are willing to maintain close communication with enterprises on both sides and hold discussions on issues of concern to them; jointly support trade and investment promotion activities organized by the two sides, including the Fair, CIFIT, the China-California Forum on Economic and Trade Cooperation, as well as cooperation activities in the areas of clean energy technology and women's health; and enhance discussions on specific standards of concern to the industry; Explore strengthening cooperation on trade facilitation; and play the role of the export control information exchange mechanism to enhance communication in the area of export control. At the invitation of the Chinese side, Under Secretary Lago will lead a delegation to China in the second half of 2024 to co-chair with the Chinese side the Second Vice-Ministerial Meeting of the U.S.-China Commerce and Trade Working Group.
During his stay in the U.S., Wang Shouwen also met and talked with his counterparts in the U.S. White House's National Economic Council, the Department of Finance, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of Commerce, and had extensive exchanges with representatives of the U.S. business community and scholars from think tanks.
