G20 trade ministers are at an impasse on countering excess industrial capacity, top US trade official Jamieson Greer said Thursday, an accusation often levied at China which rejects the criticism.
His comments came as trade ministers from the Group of 20 major economies met for a second day in the Midwestern US city of Milwaukee. The United States holds the G20‘s rotating presidency this year.
Ministers failed to find agreement across the grouping on overcapacity, seen as driving down prices unfairly, and on eliminating forced labor in supply chains, Greer said.
“Nearly all countries agreed that this is an issue that requires action,” Greer told a press conference, referring to excess capacity. He did not respond to questions on whether this was due to China’s objection.
“And nearly all countries agreed that our current system of trade remedies or responses is inadequate to solve this problem,” he said. He added that this justified unilateral US action.
There are US investigations into 16 economies on overcapacity, targeting China, the European Union, Japan, India and others.
Greer warned that countries which overproduce risk “creating an economy that rests on a house of cards.”
Trump also recently slapped tariffs on 60 trading partners over alleged forced labor concerns — another issue the G20 failed to reach agreement on.
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‘Not acceptable’
But G20 countries did find consensus against “the weaponisation of food through coercive trade actions,” Greer said.
Temperatures rose over the issue at the two-day gathering as European officials criticized Russia‘s attacks impacting Ukraine‘s grain exports.
Moscow and Kyiv have been locked in war since Russia’s 2022 invasion of its neighbor.
Russian and Ukrainian strikes targeting Black Sea ports have been wrecking and idling agricultural export capacity more quickly than trade flows can recover.
France‘s minister delegate for international trade, Nicolas Forissier, told AFP on Thursday that European officials including himself and German and British representatives to the G20 criticized Russia over the matter.
“We have to say what we think, especially on the weaponisation of food,” he said.
He added that European leaders’ comments against “the aggression of Russia in Ukraine” on food exports merely constitute “the truth.”
This did not mean the mood at G20 talks were bad, Forissier said: “On the contrary, I think the discussions are quite constructive.”
“There is a consensus on the fact that it’s not acceptable to weaponise food and agriculture,” he added.
Russia is represented at the gathering this week by minister for economic development Maxim Reshetnikov.
He criticized European leaders Wednesday for speaking in political slogans, state-controlled network Russia Today reported.
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Widening trade ties
Trade ministers from several G20 economies are also seeking to widen trade talks beyond their US host this week.
Canada for example is seeking bilateral trade deals with India, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and with the European Union on digital trade, Ottawa’s minister for international trade Maninder Sidhu told reporters Thursday.
He said Canada and India look forward to concluding negotiations “in the coming months.”
Sidhu also met Greer on the G20 sidelines, telling AFP that both sides discussed further Canada-US cooperation among other issues.
Countries are seeking cooperation with Washington to lower tariffs.
A Mexican official said Thursday that the country is making “steady progress” towards a US tariff deal.
“We would expect to have some reductions in steel and cars and aluminum,” the official added, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Mexico is not looking to rush negotiations, the official said when asked if a deal would be struck before key US midterm elections.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP)
