Don't overplay trade friction, say analysts
By Dai Yan (China Daily)
Updated: 2006-02-16 06:07

Ministry of Commerce officials said last night that they are preparing a response.

Chu Maoming, a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, told the Associated Press that he could not comment on the report because he had not yet seen it but he said China did not want to "politicize trade issues."

"We hope that trade relations between China and the US will be conducted under the principles of development, equality and mutual benefit," he said.

The US seems to play down the benefits of trade with China while making a fuss over the question of trade deficits.

Last week, the New York Times wrote on the topic: "These days, 'made in China' is mostly made elsewhere by multinational companies in Japan, South Korea and the United States that are using China as the final assembly station in their vast global production networks. "

"Analysts say this evolving global supply chain, which usually tags goods at their final assembly stop, is increasingly distorting global trade figures and has the effect of turning China into a bigger trade threat than it may actually be."

A Wall Street Journal article on Monday said many US companies are making record profits in China but corporate America often seems to go out of its way to hide its successes in China.

"US politicians girding for a possible trade war highlight the corporate losers of trade with China, while ignoring the many winners," the paper said.

A senior Chinese aviation official said yesterday that of the 863 operating civilian planes in China by November 2005, 534 were from Boeing of the United States.

China has spent nearly US$40 billion on purchasing planes from the United States, said Li Jiaxiang, president of China National Aviation Holding Company, adding Chinese airline companies ordered 60 B787 aircraft and 70 B737 aircraft in 2005 alone, with a total price tag of more than US$11 billion.

Yin Chengjie, vice-minister of agriculture, told a forum yesterday that China's trade deficit in farm produce with the United States increased from US$1.53 billion in 2001 to US$3.77 billion last year with China's opening-up of the sector.