Biden Administration Says It’s Realigning Its China Trade Policy, But Offers Few Details

U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai testifies before the Senate Finance Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, on May 12, 2021. Pete Marovich/Pool via Reuters

The United States Trade Representative (USTR) said on March 1 that Washington is realigning its trade approach towards China, adding it is considering all existing tools, and potentially new ones, to combat Beijing’s harmful trade practices. But it offered little new information about how this would be achieved.

In its new 2022 Trade Policy Agenda and 2021 Annual Report, the USTR said the administration is adopting a “new, holistic, and pragmatic approach to our relationship [with China] grounded in the principles of our worker-centered trade policy.”