U.S. May Revive China Talks

Trade Representative Carla Anderson Hills said Wednesday that American and Chinese negotiators may meet within two weeks to take another stab at settling a dispute over intellectual property rights.

On Tuesday, Washington threatened China with costly trade sanctions for failing to protect American patents and other intellectual properties.

China said it was willing to continue talks but warned that retaliation would be unfair and outside normal trade practices.

The United States, angered over what it contends is Chinese counterfeiting and piracy of U.S. goods, said it would slap punitive tariffs on $300 million worth of Chinese imports.

The United States has a list of goods that could be targeted for tariffs of up to 100%. It includes textiles, beer, ores, pharmaceuticals, jewelry, hardware, electronic instruments and watches.

Tuesday was the deadline Washington had set for the Chinese to show movement on intellectual property rights.

In a news briefing, Hills did not rule out extending negotiations with China for three months past the roughly 30-day timetable for imposing the tariffs. But “I think the likelihood would be very small,” she added.

The United States’ complaints center on inadequate protection of its chemical patents and intellectual property in China.

“We lose literally hundreds of millions of dollars in China by reason of counterfeiting and piracy,” Hills said.

China, which said it has taken steps to increase protections, criticized the United States for “giving no regard” to its “tremendous efforts and significant concessions.”

“This is unfair and is neither in accordance with the interests of both sides nor with normal international practice,” a spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Economic Relations and Trade said.

China’s protection of U.S. copyrights, patents and other intellectual property has been a source of friction at a time when China’s trade surplus with the United States is spiraling. The surplus is expected to reach $15 billion this year.