Not to worry ... blink blink ...
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Saturday, June 23, 2001
Tokyo seeks trade talks
China's tit-for-tat import curbs show parties jockeying for negotiated settlement, say analysts
PEGGY SITO and AGENCIES
Japan has asked China to hold bilateral talks early next week to resolve the escalating trade dispute between the two countries.
The dispute centres on China's punitive tariffs on Japanese imports in retaliation for Tokyo's import curbs on three farm products from the mainland.
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Takeo Hiranuma said his invitation to China to engage in talks was a recognition of the "important relationship" between the two countries.
But Mr Hiranuma said Tokyo did not intend to lift tariffs imposed in April on a range of Chinese farm products.
He stressed, however, that the dispute would not affect Japanese support for China's entry to the World Trade Organisation.
China on Thursday overcame its differences with the European Commission to reach agreement on its bid to join the WTO.
Yoshinobu Nisaka, deputy director-general of the ministry's trade policy bureau, said Japan was ready to send a senior official of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry to Beijing for the talks early next week.
The official is expected to be Tadakatsu Sano, chief of the ministry's international trade policy bureau, according to Kyodo News.
Japan's push to settle the intensifying trade row came after China said on Thursday it would impose 100 per cent extra tariffs on imports of 60 varieties of Japanese products from three different categories of goods - motor vehicles, mobile phones and air-conditioners.
This was the most serious trade threat by China since Japan temporarily raised tariffs on Chinese stone leeks, shiitake mushrooms and tatami rushes in April.
Analysts have estimated the value of the goods China is targeting at US$500 million to US$700 million. Japan's exports to China in the year to December last year were US$41.51 billion, up 22.9 per cent year on year, according to Xinhua news agency.
China's exports to Japan rose 28.5 per cent year on year last year to US$41.65 billion.
China's Ministry of Foreign Trade and Economic Co-operation (Moftec) would not comment on Japan's proposal, but Reuters quoted a Moftec official as saying Beijing was ready for a negotiated solution.
"We hope that both sides can resolve the problem through consultations," the official said.
Following Beijing's announcement on the import tariffs, Tokyo immediately lodged a protest on Thursday night and demanded these be rescinded.
"Such an action cannot be justified in the light of both the World Trade Organisation and Japan-China trade treaties," he said.
But China said the retaliatory measures taken by Beijing were based on a domestic law that allowed the country to levy special tariffs when Chinese products incurred discriminative trade treatment.
Analysts said the tit-for-tat penalties appeared to show the two countries positioning for a solution.
"There will be lots of shouting . . . at the end, they will come up with a deal," said Ken Davies, chief economist and bureau chief of EIU Asia.
Mr Davies said China's measures were a symbolic move to push Japan to the negotiating table.
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