NAVIGATING US-CHINA TRADE CONTROLS
R&C: How would you characterise recent trade relations between the US and China? What are the key factors driving the trade policies of the two countries, and what economic and political risks do they raise for companies?
Lee: China is our largest trading partner, so it would not be an exaggeration to say that the trade relationship with China is the most important one for the US, as contentious as it has been for several years. The difficulties in this trade relationship lie in the twofold nature of the relationship between the two countries. On the one hand, being our largest trading partner, there is unprecedented integration and engagement between companies in the two countries, with a corresponding pressure to further liberalise trade policies. On the other hand, China is considered as a strategic threat in the military, technological and cyber areas. There is, simply, no other country in the world that presents these two sides of the coin for the US. This has led to significant challenges for the US government in developing an effective trade policy, and consequent challenges for both US and global companies seeking to comply with the increasingly complex requirements.
R&C: Could you outline key steps taken by the Biden administration with regard to US sanctions, export controls and other trade initiatives in relation to China?
Lee: The US administration has stressed its ‘three Cs’ approach to China: competition, cooperation and confrontation. In October 2021, the US Trade Representative’s Office announced the Biden administration’s ‘New Approach to the US-China Trade Relationship’, which included rolling back some – but not all – of the Trump administration’s 301 tariffs.
Jul-Sep 2022 Issue
Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP