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South China Morning Post
28-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Chinese, EU semiconductor firms discuss supply-chain security amid ‘bullying'
Semiconductor representatives from China and Europe have come together at a government-hosted meeting in Beijing to explore deeper collaboration and enhance supply-chain resilience after the United States stepped up tech curbs on China. Advertisement Representatives from more than 40 companies in the semiconductor supply chain, both upstream and downstream, attended Tuesday's meeting, along with representatives from China's Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom), the China Semiconductor Industry Association, and the European Union Chamber of Commerce. 'At present, the security and stability of the global semiconductor production and supply chain are facing serious challenges,' the commerce ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. '[We] resolutely reject unilateralism and bullying practices.' The meeting took place as tensions between China and the US over microchips have recently escalated, with Beijing showing a strong determination not to cede any more ground in the stand-off. The meeting featured vows to safeguard the security and stability of the global semiconductor supply chain in which China and Europe are key players, the ministry statement said, adding that greater cooperation would serve both their interests. Advertisement China will continue to deepen high-level openness and 'provide a fair, stable, transparent, and predictable policy environment for enterprises', it said.
South China Morning Post
16-04-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China appoints new trade representative as US tariff war heats up
China appointed a new international trade representative at the Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom) on Wednesday amid an unprecedented trade war with the United States. Advertisement Li Chenggang will replace 59-year-old Wang Shouwen, who participated in negotiations over the 2020 trade deal between the world's two largest economies, according to a government statement. Li, 58, has decades of experience handling international negotiations at Mofcom, and also served as China's ambassador to the Geneva-based World Trade Organization (WTO) from 2021. He holds a bachelor's degree in law from Peking University and a master's degree in the economics of law from the University of Hamburg in Germany. Though it is unclear why Li has been appointed, analysts said it could be a sign that Beijing is looking to make a breakthrough in negotiations with the US over a potential deal to end the trade war. 'It might be because against the rising tensions after 'Liberation Day', Li might be seen as someone who could break the impasse in the negotiations,' said Alfredo Montufar-Helu, a senior adviser to the China Center at US-based research group The Conference Board. Advertisement 'Probably his experience in Geneva means that he has established linkages with key stake holders – their governments including the US.'
South China Morning Post
10-04-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China vows big changes to export controls – fresh safeguards amid a raging trade war
China has vowed to strengthen and improve its export-control measures to safeguard its interests, in a bid to mitigate some of the fallout from a rapidly intensifying trade war with the United States. Advertisement The Ministry of Commerce (Mofcom) said it will accelerate efforts to strengthen the country's export control system and improve enforcement, as it navigates an 'increasingly complex and challenging global environment'. 'We will step up item classification, tighten licensing enforcement, expand multilateral and bilateral dialogue on export controls, and promote compliance frameworks,' the ministry said at an export-control work meeting in Beijing on Thursday. 'These efforts aim to further modernise China's national export-control system and better safeguard the country's sovereignty, security and development interests.' While the statement did not explicitly mention the United States, it came amid escalating trade tensions with Washington. And to date, all of Beijing's export-control lists have targeted US entities. Advertisement After the series of back-and-forth tariff salvoes, as it stands, Washington has imposed a 125 per cent tariff on Chinese imports this year, bringing the effective tariff rate to about 136 per cent. Meanwhile, Beijing's new levy on US goods has risen to 84 per cent, also on top of earlier-imposed tariffs. And China also carried out other countermeasures by imposing export controls on 28 US entities in two separate rounds, while also adding an additional 17 American firms to its unreliable-entities list.
