Of all the economic rifts between the US and China, one felt personally by American executives is what they describe as the difficult, even hostile, conditions they face doing business in China.
Treasury secretary Janet L. Yellen laid bare those concerns on Friday by levelling a forceful objection in Beijing to punitive measures the Chinese government has taken against foreign firms, as tension between the two nations has escalated.
Surrounded by executives from some of the most powerful American companies, Yellen criticised the Chinese government’s harsh treatment of companies with foreign ties and its recent decision to impose export controls on certain critical minerals. She suggested that such actions justify the Biden administration’s efforts to make US manufacturers less reliant on China.
Yellen’s comments, made to a group of executives from American businesses operating in China, underscored the challenges that the world’s two largest economies face as they struggle to reconcile their deep differences.
The forceful defence of American industry came on Yellen’s first day of meetings in Beijing during a high-stakes trip to ease tension between the US and China. She conveyed her objections to China’s top officials, including Premier Li Qiang, in what was the first visit to China by a treasury secretary in four years.
“During meetings with my counterparts, I am communicating the concerns that I’ve heard from the US business community — including China’s use of nonmarket tools like expanded subsidies for its state-owned enterprises and domestic firms, as well as barriers to market access for foreign firms,” Yellen said at an event held by the American Chamber of Commerce in China. “I’ve been particularly troubled by punitive actions that have been taken against US firms in recent months.”
In March, the Chinese authorities detained five Chinese nationals working in Beijing for the Mintz Group, an American consulting company with 18 offices around the world, and closed the branch. The next month, the authorities questioned employees in the Shanghai office of Bain & Company, the US management consulting firm.
New York Times News Service
