China 'keeping wary eye' on US and EU as trade pressure mounts

Timothy Stratford is quoted in the South China Morning Post regarding the United States and European Union’s pressure on China to reform its economy. Mr. Stratford says of the Chinese state-led economic model, “The global trading rules are based on assumptions that market economies are more efficient than state-led economies and that countries benefit from the free trade due to the principle of comparative advantages.” He adds, “However, China is trying to develop many key sectors of its economy through state intervention and has also set a goal to be self-sufficient in certain key sectors such as semiconductors. These policies, and geopolitical considerations, constrict the space for the normal trade rules to operate.”