USCWG In the News

China is reportedly taking the first steps to pay for oil in yuan instead of US dollars this year

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China is taking its first steps towards paying for imported crude oil in yuan instead of the U.S. dollar, three people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, a key development in Beijing's efforts to establish its currency internationally. Shifting just part of global oil trade into the yuan is potentially huge. Oil is the world's most traded commodity, with an annual trade value…

China warns US not to open Pandora's Box, unleash trade ills on world

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China warned the United States on Thursday not to open Pandora's Box and spark a flurry of protectionist practices across the globe, even as Beijing pointed to U.S. goods that it could target in a deepening Sino-U.S. trade dispute. China could target a broad range of U.S. businesses from agriculture to aircraft, autos, semiconductors and even services if the trade conflict escalates,…

Confucius Institutes in US misinterpreted

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There seem be two types of Confucius Institutes in the United States: those that are hailed on more than 100 campuses as a bridge to learning the Chinese language and culture, and those that are labeled by some newspapers and websites as a "political tool" of China. The US media's "flawed assumption" has contributed to such confusion, according to a senior China expert in Washington.…

This is the start of the US-China trade war

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Hours earlier, Trump signed an order that also could result in restrictions on Chinese investment in the USA, saying it would be the "first of many" trade actions. There are fears the move would trigger a trade war between the world's number one and number two economies. "Yes", Mr. Trump said, according to the White House press pool. Pelosi said Trump's tariffs package "should…

US politicians must realize institutes aren't political tools

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There seem be two types of Confucius Institutes in the United States: those that are hailed on more than 100 campuses as a bridge to learning the Chinese language and culture, and those that are labeled by some newspapers and websites as a "political tool" of China. The US media's "flawed assumption" has contributed to such confusion, according to a senior China expert in Washington.…

WTO: US-China trade war would have 'severe' economic impact

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A fully-fledged trade war between China and the US would have "a severe impact on the global economy", the World Trade Organisation head has told the BBC. There was a risk global growth could fall "very quickly", WTO director-general Roberto Azevedo warned. His comments follow the US and China announcing proposed tariffs against one another, as Washington and Beijing ramp up the…

China Is Filling the Africa-Sized Gap in US Strategy

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The Trump administration is hardly the first to give Africa short shrift in its national security considerations. The continent received a measly three paragraphs in the 2015 National Security Strategy, mostly concerning epidemic diseases and intrastate conflict, with bare mentions of economic and political engagement. But the stakes are higher now. China is spreading its economic…

The Chinese Unknown That's Making Africa's Phones

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No matter how many phones you sell, Yu Weiguo has learned, it's tough to keep to a schedule when the government declares martial law. During his eight years in Ethiopia, Yu has helped turn little-known Transsion Holdings, owner of the sleepy Chinese brand Tecno Mobile, into Africa's leading mobile device maker. Having sold at least 200 million phones on the continent, he picked the…

Chinese flotilla transits South China Sea, satellite imagery shows

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The U.S. military has warily watched the steady growth of China's military and its expansion into the South China Sea, where its anti-access/area denial strategy seeks to shoo America and other outsiders out of the country's watery backyard. This week, the country's naval forces produced its latest coming out party of sorts, as scores of ships steamed with an aircraft carrier along a…

China appeals to Washington to give up tariff plan

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BEIJING (AP) — China's Commerce Ministry urged Washington on Thursday to discard planned tariffs it warned might set off a chain reaction that could disrupt global trade and said Beijing will “fight to the end.” A ministry spokesman, Gao Feng, gave no details of how Beijing might respond to U.S. President Donald Trump's proposed tariff hike on $60 billion of Chinese…