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The Biden White House has decided to not deviate much from the trade policy adopted towards China by President Trump. This is a rare case of continuity between the two administrations, the latter of which has generally made every effort to shred anything left behind by its predecessor. Tariffs and sanctions will remain in place according to the Biden administrations, in spite of pleas from China and parts of the private sector.
Trump trade policy survives
The insistence on maintaining a strict trade policy towards China is particularly surprising given that Trump was often criticized for his hostility towards the Chinese.
Prominent supporters and staffers under Biden have been almost disturbingly friendly towards the Chinese government at times.
China has announced that it is pressing the White House to eliminate tariffs put in place by Trump. The United States has thus far refused to grant these requests.
This appears to be one of the few policies from the former administration which Biden is willing to both keep in place and defend against criticisms from the media.
Some US companies have asked Biden to at least ease the tariffs, which have drastically increased the amounts they pay for shipping in some cases.
Returning manufacturing to the United States is apparently out of the question for these companies. Addiction to cheap foreign labor surpasses all other concerns it seems.
China complains
Both administrations have defended the tariffs by pointing out that there is an enormous difference between how China and the United States handle their respective trading attitudes towards one another.
Trump and Biden have both recognized that the Chinese government is not willing to play fair. China is aggressively promoting its national interests through its trading policy.
China, it turns out, is not particularly honest about upholding its end of trade agreements made with the United States and is in no hurry to make any sacrifices for the sake of improved relations.
The relationship with China has not improved significantly with the departure of Trump. The Chinese military is continuing to threaten Taiwan, Japan, and other US allies in the region.
The commitment to broadly keeping tariffs and sanctions in place is a sign that Biden is not willing to passively accept everything China does.
With supply chain issues and inflation threatening it remains to be seen if that uncharacteristic resolve will survive mounting criticism from the media and the private sector.
