Buenos Aires :US President Donald Trump’s latest attacks on China and the European Union will shape the discourse on global trade conflicts and competitive devaluation as Group of 20 finance ministers meet in Buenos Aires this weekend.
Trump’s protectionist policies that have seen him slap steep tariffs on steel and aluminum, angering allies such as the EU, Canada and Mexico, already looked set to fashion discussions between finance ministers and central bankers from the world’s 20 leading economies during two days of meetings.
That is even more the case after his latest Twitter outburst on Friday saw him accuse the EU and China of “manipulating their currencies and interest rates lower,” while he also took aim at the US Federal Reserve for hiking interest rates, complaining that it eroded “our big competitive edge.
” China and the US have no plans for bilateral talks, according to US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, who has vowed to “respond to concerns on US trade policies” when he meets with fellow ministers.
But China will be a hot topic as Group of Seven ministers hold a one-hour session on the margins of the wider meeting, not least after Trump threatened to crank up punitive tariffs against the country to include the entire $500 billion in goods the US imports from the Asian powerhouse.
As well as his steel and aluminum duties, and threats to likewise hit foreign car imports with tariffs, Trump has already slapped China with a 25 percent levy on $34 billion in goods, with another $16 billion on the way.
