The Prime Minister of Australia responded to the US’s new tariff proposal on tariffs, saying the relevant measures were “unreasonable,” and claimed that Australia and the US have an “ideological disagreement” on tariffs. PM Albanese stated on the 4th that the US government has broken the decades-old consensus between the two countries that tariffs are harmful to the levying country, which is the “ideological disagreement” between us. “Tariffs will increase the cost of goods and services in the levying country, while… free trade benefits the global economy,” he added to ABC.
PM Albanese’s资料图, Source: Australian ABC
On June 2nd, the US Trade Representative’s office proposed levying an additional 10% or 12.5% tariffs on imports from 60 economies. According to the proposal, the US will impose a 10% tariff on imports from the UK, Canada, Ecuador, the EU, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, and Argentina, among 15 economies; while China, Japan, India, South Korea, Brazil, Switzerland, Australia, and 45 other economies under investigation would face an additional 12.5% tariff. Jamie Grile, the US Trade Representative, declared in a statement that it was unacceptable that the US’s major trading partners had not effectively resolved the issue of “forced labor” products, causing American workers to face “unfair competition” in the global market. According to the AP, this round of tariff measures is expected to make America’s important trading partners uneasy.
On the 3rd, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning stated at a regular press conference that China has always opposed all forms of unilateral tariff measures, as a tariff war or trade war benefits no one. Economic and trade issues should be resolved through dialogue and consultation on the basis of equality, respect, and mutual benefit. Mao Ning emphasized that China does not exist所谓的”forced labor,” and opposed using this as an excuse for political manipulation.
