China says it is working with France on trade differences, no sign yet of a cognac deal
China says it is working with France on trade differences, no sign yet of a cognac deal
BEIJING/PARIS - China and France have agreed to resolve their trade disputes through dialogue, China's foreign ministry said on Friday, though there was no indication that agreement had been reached in talks on lifting Chinese levies on European brandy.
Talks to resolve the cognac dispute accelerated this week with China's commerce minister Wang Wentao meeting his French counterpart in Paris on the sidelines of an OECD conference, and technical talks on the matter taking place in Beijing.
The latest round of negotiations have raised hopes of a settlement, two industry sources with knowledge of the discussions said.
"The two sides have reached consensus on resolving economic and trade issues through dialogue and consultation", the Chinese foreign ministry said after a call between the Chinese and French foreign ministers.
Chinese anti-dumping measures that applied duties of up to 39% on imports of European brandy - with French cognac bearing the brunt - have strained relations between Paris and Beijing.
The brandy duties were enforced days after the European Union took action against Chinese-made electric vehicle imports to shield its local industry, prompting France's President Emmanuel Macron to accuse Beijing of "pure retaliation".
The Chinese duties have dented sales of brands including LVMH's Hennessy, Pernod Ricard's Martell and Remy Cointreau.
Beijing was initially meant to make a final decision on the duties by January, but extended the deadline to April and then again to July 5.
China is seeking to strengthen trade ties with the 27-member bloc as relations with the United States have soured in the escalating trade war.
"France will not compromise on ... the protection of its industries, such as cognac," French trade minister Laurent Saint-Martin said after talks with Wang on Wednesday.
Chinese officials, meanwhile, signalled to industry officials during three rounds of technical meetings in Beijing this week they wanted to settle the matter, one of the sources said, but added some sticking points remained.
With annual imports of around $1.7 billion last year, China is the French brandy industry's most important measured by value and the second-largest by volume after the United States. REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
5 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Intel CEO Tan Lip-Bu to visit White House on Aug 11, WSJ reports
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Intel CEO Tan Lip-Bu hopes to win Mr Trump's approval by showing his commitment to the US. WASHINGTON - Intel CEO Tan Lip-Bu is set to visit the White House on Aug 11 after US President Donald Trump called for his remova l last week, the Wall Street Journal reported on Aug 10, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. Intel and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Mr Tan is expected to have an extensive conversation with Mr Trump while looking to explain his personal and professional background, the report said, adding that he could propose ways Intel and the US government could work together, the report added. Mr Tan hopes to win Mr Trump's approval by showing his commitment to the US and guaranteeing the importance of keeping Intel's manufacturing capabilities as a national security issue, the report added. Last week, Mr Trump demanded the immediate resignation of Mr Tan, calling him 'highly conflicted' due to his ties to Chinese firms and raising doubts about plans to turn around the struggling American chip icon. Mr Tan said he shared the president's commitment to advancing US national and economic security. Mr Trump's intervention marked a rare instance of a US president publicly calling for a CEO's ouster, and sparked debate among investors. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore BTO income ceiling, age floor for singles being reviewed: Chee Hong Tat World Netanyahu says Israel's new Gaza offensive will start soon Singapore 'It's so close': Crowds turn up for Red Lions, mobile column at National Day heartland celebrations Business Singapore can deliver and thrive in a fragmented global economy: Morgan Stanley analysts Asia As global supply chains shift, China's exports of factory robots see a sharp rise Singapore askST Jobs: How to deal with the dread of returning to work after a holiday? Singapore Man's claim amid divorce that his mother is true owner of 3 properties cuts no ice with judge Opinion Anwar's government: Full house but plenty of empty offices Reuters reported exclusively in April that Mr Tan invested at least US$200 million (S$256.96 million) in hundreds of Chinese advanced manufacturing and chip firms, some of which were linked to the Chinese military. Mr Tan, a Malaysian-born Chinese American business executive, was also the CEO of Cadence Design from 2008 through December 2021, during which the chip design software maker sold products to a Chinese military university believed to be involved in simulating nuclear explosions. Cadence agreed to plead guilty in July and pay more than US$140 million to resolve the US charges over the sales, which Reuters first reported. REUTERS
Business Times
5 minutes ago
- Business Times
Intel CEO to visit White House on Monday: WSJ
INTEL CEO Lip-Bu Tan is set to visit the White House on Monday after US President Donald Trump called for his removal last week, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter. Reuters could not immediately confirm the report. Intel and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Tan is expected to have an extensive conversation with Trump while looking to explain his personal and professional background, the report said, adding that he could propose ways Intel and the US government could work together, the report added. Tan hopes to win Trump's approval by showing his commitment to the US and guaranteeing the importance of keeping Intel's manufacturing capabilities as a national security issue, the report added. Last week, Trump demanded the immediate resignation of Tan, calling him 'highly conflicted' due to his ties to Chinese firms and raising doubts about plans to turn around the struggling American chip icon. Tan said he shared the president's commitment to advancing US national and economic security. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Trump's intervention marked a rare instance of a US president publicly calling for a CEO's ouster and sparked debate among investors. Reuters reported exclusively in April that Tan invested at least US$200 million in hundreds of Chinese advanced manufacturing and chip firms, some of which were linked to the Chinese military. Tan, a Malaysian-born Chinese American business executive, was also the CEO of Cadence Design from 2008 through December 2021, during which the chip design software maker sold products to a Chinese military university believed to be involved in simulating nuclear explosions. Last month, Cadence agreed to plead guilty and pay more than US$140 million to resolve the US charges over the sales, which Reuters first reported. REUTERS
Business Times
5 minutes ago
- Business Times
Australia set to cut rates, governor stay coy on policy outlook
[SYDNEY] Australia's central bank is poised to deliver its third interest-rate cut this year as inflationary pressures ebb, while governor Michele Bullock is expected to stick with her cautious stance on the monetary policy outlook. Traders and most economists polled by Bloomberg anticipate the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will lower its cash rate by 25 basis points to 3.6 per cent on Tuesday (Aug 12), bringing its cumulative easing in the current cycle to 75 basis points. The RBA will also publish its quarterly update of macroeconomic forecasts alongside the 2.30 pm decision. An hour later, Bullock will hold a media conference in Sydney. The meeting comes five weeks after the central bank shocked investors by standing pat in defiance of overwhelming expectations for a cut. Data since then has shown the RBA's preferred quarterly trimmed mean gauge of inflation cooled to 2.7 per cent, edging closer to the midpoint of its 2 to 3 per cent target, an outcome Deputy Governor Andrew Hauser described as 'very welcome'. The 'appetite to shock the market again probably isn't very high', said Sean Kean, chief Asia-Pacific strategist at JB Drax Honore, who expects a cut. As to the future, he says they are unlikely to 'commit to anything. It will be meeting by meeting and probably quarterly will be when they make the decisions'. Australia's economy hit a softer patch at the start of 2025 as both public demand and exports dragged on growth, while consumer spending remained tepid. Timely data in recent weeks have suggested activity picked up last quarter, led by household consumption and trade. Gross domestic product data for the second quarter will be released on Sep 3. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up With inflation inside the RBA's target band and growth picking up, investors are focused on how much further easing the economy will need. Bullock has said regularly that the RBA may not have to ease as much as global counterparts because it did not take rates as high during the 2022-23 tightening cycle. Money markets are fully pricing one more cut after August, taking the cash rate to 3.35 per cent, with a 50-50 chance of a further reduction by December. The median forecast among economists puts the terminal rate at 3.1 per cent by early 2026. Alicia Garcia Herrero, chief Asia-Pacific economist at Natixis, expects a 'hawkish cut' this week with unemployment still low. 'Governor Bullock is likely to keep a cautious stance, potentially emphasising data dependency,' she said. There are tentative signs that Australia's labour market is softening, with unemployment climbing to a four-year high of 4.3 per cent in June. Further clouding the outlook is the Trump administration's protectionist policies, heightened international tensions and a slowdown in Chinese demand. All that suggests the RBA will take the terminal rate to 2.85 per cent by June next year, according to Luci Ellis, who was previously an RBA assistant governor and sits at the most dovish end of economists' forecasts. 'If inflation is at target and you are roughly at full employment, then monetary policy does not need to be restrictive, as it currently is,' said Ellis, now chief economist at Westpac Banking. 'While the RBA is trying to be 'cautious and predictable', that is consistent with cuts to the cash rate on the timetable we envisage.' Unlike many peers, the RBA does not publish forward guidance on the rate path. Instead, it uses money market pricing as a technical assumption to assemble its macroeconomic forecasts. That has left investors unsure how to read the central bank's signals. In the two years since a sweeping review reshaped how the RBA communicates, the central bank has adopted a more narrative tone, one aimed at rebuilding trust with the public. But for global investors and market participants accustomed to the data-heavy frameworks of the Federal Reserve or European Central Bank, the RBA's language is making it harder to pin down its reaction function or gauge the degree of policy restrictiveness. 'It has been a surprisingly choppy ride this year for RBA-watchers,' said Andrew Boak, chief economist at Goldman Sachs, pointing to a hawkish surprise last month after an unexpectedly dovish commentary in May, which came after a 'surprisingly hawkish cut' in February. 'Extremely elevated volatility in two-year government bond yields in the hours around this year's RBA meetings testifies to this being a period of heightened uncertainty, relative to the preceding decade and key peer central banks,' Boak said. BLOOMBERG
