The Sino-US disputes at the G20 have largely resulted in a dispute over a single word | Today’s news

The disagreement between Chinese and US officials at a meeting of Group of 20 finance chiefs this week mostly revolved around a dispute over one word, according to people familiar with the talks.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly accused Chinese officials on Tuesday of preventing the group from issuing a joint communique after a two-day gathering in Asheville, North Carolina. The US side attributed the impasse to disagreements over language issues ranging from critical minerals to debt restructuring.

But the most significant sticking point was the inclusion of the phrase “non-market” in a sentence about trade imbalances, according to the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters. Chinese officials saw the term as a veiled attack on state-owned companies, which are a mainstay of the nation’s economy, the people said.

During wording talks, China proposed a modified phrase that would address trade imbalances without targeting national state-owned enterprises, according to people familiar with the matter. Chinese negotiators have privately received support from some countries for his proposal, although they have failed to reach a consensus with the US, the people said.

The closing statement from the US chairman included the sentence that countries should agree to “eliminate non-market policies and practices that exacerbate imbalances”.

The dispute highlights simmering tensions between the world’s biggest economies weeks before Chinese leader Xi Jinping heads to Washington for a high-profile summit with US President Donald Trump. Bessent is a key figure in managing Washington’s relationship with Beijing, leading trade talks and poised to lead bilateral talks on artificial intelligence in the coming weeks.

China’s Ministry of Finance did not respond to a request for comment after business hours. The U.S. Treasury also did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.

“It’s unfortunate that the Chinese didn’t want to go with us,” Bessent told Fox News in an interview Wednesday, referring to Beijing’s objections to the G20 communiqué.

The Chinese delegation in Asheville was led by Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People’s Bank of China, and Vice Finance Minister Liao Min, who was also part of Beijing’s negotiating team during Trump’s tariff war last year.

The US government officially defines “non-market” policies and practices as government interventions that distort global trade to the benefit of domestic industries, including the conduct of state-owned or controlled enterprises.

The word has also long appeared in US criticism of China’s trade practices, with the US trade representative calling the 2017 investigation a response to the Asian country’s “non-market economic system”. The inclusion of the phrase in the G20 communiqué could be read as a coded reference to China without explicitly naming the nation, the people familiar said.

References to “non-market” policies and practices appeared in two of the four paragraphs in the US prime minister’s statement, which the Treasury Department said were problematic for China. Other parts focused on the operation of key value chains such as critical minerals and debt restructuring reserves, according to the US statement.

China’s Ministry of Finance did not directly address Bessent’s comments in a statement on Wednesday, but said that “all parties should take a comprehensive, objective and balanced view of the problem of global imbalances and fundamentally solve the debt problems of developing countries by promoting development.”

Pan, the PBOC governor, said in a statement on Wednesday that rising protectionism, strained national security frameworks and policy unpredictability were key factors in worsening global imbalances. He urged deficit countries to reduce fiscal deficits and raise savings rates while surplus countries increased consumption and investment accordingly.

“All countries should formulate medium- and long-term policy plans, make clear commitments and resolutely implement them,” he said.

China’s staggering export engine remains a flashpoint in relations with the US. The Asian country is set to hit a record trade surplus of $1.2 trillion in 2025 – up 20% from the previous year – and Bessent made it a key topic during the meeting of G20 finance chiefs. According to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the U.S. had a roughly $200 billion trade deficit with China last year.

Bessent again criticized China on Wednesday, saying its policies were suppressing domestic demand and relying on exports for growth. Bessent, which says around 4% of the nation’s GDP goes to “industrial subsidies”, has named BYD Co as the beneficiary.

“Anyone here has ever seen a BYD car,” Bessent said at a Charlotte Economics Club event in North Carolina. “It’s the best $70,000 car that $35,000 can buy – it’s heavily subsidized.”

A Rhodium Group report earlier this year found that BYD’s direct grants translated to about $292 per vehicle, a roughly 5% cost gap of $4,700 compared to Tesla in China. Most of BYD’s cost savings come from the company making many of its own components and because of the scale of its production, the report said.

China has rejected accusations by the US and others that it achieved its record surplus through unfair state support for domestic companies, with the Ministry of Commerce releasing a white paper in July titled “China’s Attitude on the So-Called Overcapacity Issue”. The paper pointed out that the US and the European Union provide subsidies to industries such as electric vehicles and artificial intelligence.

“Accusing China of ‘unfair competition’ and ‘non-market policies and practices’ is a typical case of ‘double standards’ and real injustice,” the paper said.

With help from Derek Wallbank and Chunying Zhang.

This article was generated from an automated news agency source without text modification.