China alone dissented from a G20 cheap-exports statement the other 19 accepted
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said at the Asheville close that 19 of the G20 members had agreed cheap exports from non-market economies are not sustainable, with China the sole dissenter. Finance ministers issued a chair's statement that all but China backed in full. Bessent had hoped for a unanimous joint communiqué and urged tariffs against trade imbalances, while saying Russia's presence had not disrupted the talks.
Geopolitics··Morning
China was the sole dissenter on cheap exports at the Asheville close
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said at the close of the two-day meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, that 19 of the G20 members had agreed that non-market economies pushing out a never-ending stream of cheap exports is not sustainable, and that China was the sole dissenter. Bessent named the dissenter as the People's Republic of China, the country with the world's largest current account surplus. G20 finance ministers closed with a chair's statement that all but China backed in full, despite tension over Russia's participation.[1], [2]
Scott Bessent urged tariffs and previewed a Trump-Xi meeting
Scott Bessent said he had hoped to announce a unanimous joint communiqué, and that he urged counterparts to use tariffs and other measures against trade imbalances. He said he tried to keep the agenda on growth while asking some counterparts to follow the Trump administration's use of tariffs. The administration, echoing many economists, blames China for trade imbalances that leave it with a large surplus while the US runs a sizable deficit. At the closing press conference Bessent previewed the coming meeting between Trump and China's President Xi Jinping, saying he had warned other nations at the start of Trump's second term that the new US tariff wall would push Chinese goods into their markets, and that he had unfortunately been right.[1]
Scott Bessent said Anton Siluanov's presence had not disrupted the talks
Washington's European allies had voiced frustration that Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov was welcomed at the US-hosted meetings, and the traditional family photo was taken on Monday without him after their protests. Scott Bessent said Moscow's presence had not disrupted the discussions. Ministers also dealt with the war in the Middle East, tariffs, global trade imbalances and continued support for Ukraine. Bessent said the near-unanimous backing for the chair's statement showed there had been no impact from Russia's attendance.[2]
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