US sends top Treasury officials to China to discuss economy

A team of five US Treasury Department officials is traveling to Beijing this week for a series of meetings on the economy with their counterparts in China, a Treasury official told CNN on Monday.

A team of five US Treasury Department officials is traveling to Beijing this week for a series of meetings on the economy with their counterparts in China, a Treasury official told CNN on Monday. The trip by senior officials comes ahead of a planned return to China by Treasury secretary Janet Yellen later in 2024. The high-level US delegation will be led by Jay Shambaugh, Treasury’s under secretary for international affairs. US officials plan to have frank conversations about China’s trade tactics — a thorny subject that has united many in Washington and that former President Donald Trump has vowed to aggressively attack by imposing massive tariffs. Specifically, the Treasury delegation plans to raise China’s use of non-market economic practices and industrial overcapacity, the official said. In the past, Yellen has called out China for “unfair” practices, including erecting barriers for foreign firms to enter the coveted market and taking “coercive actions” against American firms. There are also plans for candid talks on economic developments, including risks to the global economy and fiscal and central bank policies, according to Treasury.