The State Council Information Office on Sunday issued a white paper to provide a comprehensive picture of the China-US economic and trade consultations, and present China's policy position on these consultations.

Wang Shouwen, vice-minister of commerce, answered questions on the white paper at a news conference on June 2.

Here are the highlights:

1. China does not want but is not afraid of a trade war: white paper

2. US-imposed tariff measures harm others and are of no benefit to itself: white paper

3. US-provoked trade friction perils entire world: white paper

4. US accusation of China IP theft, forced technology transfer unfounded

5. China-US trade, investment are mutually beneficial: white paper

6. US backtracks on commitments in China-US trade consultations: white paper

US-imposed tariff measures harm others and are of no benefit to itself: white paper

The US administration has imposed additional tariffs on Chinese goods exported to the US, impeding two-way trade and investment cooperation and undermining market confidence and economic stability in the two countries and globally, according to a white paper titled China's Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations issued by the State Council Information Office on Sunday.

The US tariff measures lead to a decrease in the volume of China's export to the US, which fell by 9.7 percent year-on-year in the first four months of 2019, dropping for five months in a row, the white paper said, citing data from the website of China's General Administration of Customs.

In addition, as China has to impose tariffs as a countermeasure to US tariff hikes, US exports to China have dropped for eight months in a row.

The white paper said that the uncertainty brought by US-China economic and trade friction made companies in both countries more hesitant about investing. China's investment in the US continues to fall and the growth rate of US investment in China has also slowed down.

Direct investment by Chinese companies in the US was US$5.79 billion in 2018, down by 10 percent year-on-year, the white paper said, citing data from the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

In 2018, paid-in US investment in China was US$2.69 billion, up by only 1.5 percent year-on-year, compared with an increase of 11 percent in 2017.

With the outlook for China-US trade friction unclear, the WTO has lowered its forecast for global trade growth in 2019 from 3.7 percent to 2.6 percent, the white paper said, citing a WTO trade forecasts report on its website.

US-provoked trade friction perils entire world: white paper

The China-US economic and trade friction provoked by the United States damages the interests of both countries and of the wider world, according to a white paper titled China's Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations issued by the State Council Information Office on Sunday.

Trumpeting "America First," the current US administration has adopted a series of unilateral and protectionist measures, regularly wielded tariffs as a "big stick" and coerced other countries into accepting its demands. The US has initiated frequent investigations under the long-unused Sections 201 and 232 against its main trading partners, causing disruption to the global economic and trade landscape. Specifically targeting China, in August 2017, it launched a unilateral investigation under Section 301. Turning a blind eye to China's unremitting efforts and remarkable progress in protecting intellectual property and improving the business environment for foreign investors, the US issued a myriad of slanted and negative observations, and imposed additional tariffs and investment restrictions on China, provoking economic and trade friction between the two countries, said the white paper.

Turning a blind eye to the nature of the economic structure and the stage of development in China and the US, as well as the reality of the international industrial division of labor, the US insists that China's "unfair" and "non-reciprocal" trade policies have created a trade deficit in bilateral commercial exchanges that constitutes "being taken advantage of," leading to unilateral imposition of additional tariffs on China. In fact, in today's globalized world, the Chinese and American economies are highly integrated and together constitute an entire industrial chain. The two economies are bound in a union that is mutually beneficial and win-win in nature. Equating a trade deficit to being taken advantage of is an error. The restrictive measures the US has imposed on China are not good for China or the US, and still worse for the rest of the world.

US-provoked trade friction perils entire world: white paper

The China-US economic and trade friction provoked by the United States damages the interests of both countries and of the wider world, according to a white paper titled China's Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations issued by the State Council Information Office on Sunday.

Trumpeting "America First," the current US administration has adopted a series of unilateral and protectionist measures, regularly wielded tariffs as a "big stick" and coerced other countries into accepting its demands. The US has initiated frequent investigations under the long-unused Sections 201 and 232 against its main trading partners, causing disruption to the global economic and trade landscape. Specifically targeting China, in August 2017, it launched a unilateral investigation under Section 301. Turning a blind eye to China's unremitting efforts and remarkable progress in protecting intellectual property and improving the business environment for foreign investors, the US issued a myriad of slanted and negative observations, and imposed additional tariffs and investment restrictions on China, provoking economic and trade friction between the two countries, said the white paper.

Turning a blind eye to the nature of the economic structure and the stage of development in China and the US, as well as the reality of the international industrial division of labor, the US insists that China's "unfair" and "non-reciprocal" trade policies have created a trade deficit in bilateral commercial exchanges that constitutes "being taken advantage of," leading to unilateral imposition of additional tariffs on China. In fact, in today's globalized world, the Chinese and American economies are highly integrated and together constitute an entire industrial chain. The two economies are bound in a union that is mutually beneficial and win-win in nature. Equating a trade deficit to being taken advantage of is an error. The restrictive measures the US has imposed on China are not good for China or the US, and still worse for the rest of the world.

US accusation of China IP theft, forced technology transfer unfounded: white paper

Accusing China of stealing intellectual property to support its own development is an unfounded fabrication, according to a white paper titled China's Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations released by the State Council Information Office on Sunday.

Historical records confirm that China's achievements in scientific and technological innovation are not something we stole or forcibly took from others; they were earned through self-reliance and hard work, the white paper said.

China has established a legal system for the protection of intellectual property that is consistent with prevailing international rules and adapted to China's domestic conditions. The understanding of the importance of intellectual property among the general public and business community in China has increased, the value of royalties paid to foreign rights-holders has risen significantly, and the number of intellectual property applications and registrations has surged, said the white paper.

Former WIPO Director General Arpad Bogsch spoke highly of China's legal framework for intellectual property protection, noting that China's achievements are "unmatched in the history of intellectual property protection."

The US Chamber of Commerce recognized that China is making concrete progress in creating an intellectual property environment appropriate to the 21st century.

In its 2018 China Business Climate Survey Report, the American Chamber of Commerce in China noted that among the main challenges facing its member companies operating in China, concern over intellectual property dropped from 5th place in 2011 to 12th place in 2018.

An article in The Diplomat predicted that China will become a leader in global intellectual property. Many of the concerns raised by foreign firms doing business in China have already been addressed through judicial reform and a strengthened enforcement mechanism, according to the white paper.

In terms of some key innovation indices, China is already among the world's leading players, the white paper said.

In 2017, total R&D investment in China reached RMB 1.76 trillion, ranking second in the world. The number of patent applications reached 1.382 million, ranking No. 1 in the world for the seventh consecutive year. The number of invention patents granted reached 327,000, up by 8.2 percent year-on-year. China ranks third in the world in terms of valid invention patents held, the white paper noted.

China's economic development has benefited from international technology transfer and dissemination. International holders of technology have also reaped enormous benefits from this process, said the white paper.

China encourages and respects voluntary technical cooperation between Chinese and foreign firms based on market principles. It strongly opposes forced technology transfer and takes resolute action against intellectual property infringement. Accusations against China of forced technology transfer are baseless and untenable, the document noted.

China-US trade, investment are mutually beneficial: white paper

China and the US are each other's largest trading partner and important source of investment, and their commercial cooperation has brought substantial benefits to both countries and both peoples, according to a white paper titled China's Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations released by the State Council Information Office on Sunday.

In 2018, bilateral trade in goods and services exceeded US$750 billion, and two-way direct investment approached US$160 billion, the white paper said.

According to China Customs, the trade in goods between China and the US grew from less than US$2.5 billion in 1979 when the two countries forged diplomatic ties to US$633.5 billion in 2018, a 252-fold increase. In 2018, the US was China's largest trading partner and export market, and the sixth largest source of imports. According to the US Department of Commerce, in 2018 China was the largest trading partner of the US, its third largest export market, and its largest source of imports. China is the key export market for US airplanes, soybeans, automobiles, integrated circuits and cotton. During the ten years from 2009 to 2018, China was one of the fastest growing export markets for American goods, with an annual average increase of 6.3 percent and an aggregate growth of 73.2 percent, higher than the average growth of 56.9 percent represented by other regions in the world, the white paper said.

Trade in services between China and the US is flourishing and highly complementary. The two countries have conducted extensive, in-depth, and mutually-beneficial cooperation in tourism, culture, and intellectual property. China is the largest destination for US tourists in the Asia-Pacific and the US is the largest overseas destination for Chinese students. According to Chinese figures, two-way trade in services rose from US$27.4 billion in 2006, the earliest year with available statistics, to US$125.3 billion in 2018, a 3.6-fold increase. In 2018, China's services trade deficit with the US reached US$48.5 billion.

Over the past forty years, two-way investment between China and the US has grown from near zero to approximately US$160 billion, and this cooperation has proved fruitful. According to MOFCOM, by the end of 2018 accumulative Chinese business direct investment in the US exceeded US$73.17 billion. The rapid growth of Chinese business investment in the US has contributed to local economic growth, job creation, and tax revenues. According to MOFCOM, the paid-in investment by the US in China was US$85.19 billion by the end of 2018. In 2017, the total annual sales revenues of US-invested companies in China were US$700 billion, with profits exceeding US$50 billion.

Therefore, if trade in goods and services as well as two-way investment are taken into account, China-US trade and economic relations are mutually beneficial, rather than the US "being taken advantage of", the white paper said.

US backtracks on commitments in China-US trade consultations: white paper

Since they were launched in February 2018, the economic and trade consultations have come a long way with China and the US agreeing on most parts of the deal. But the consultations have not been free of setbacks, each of them being the result of a US breach of consensus and commitments, and backtracking, according to a white paper released Sunday.

In response to the economic and trade friction started by the US, China has been forced to take countermeasures, as bilateral trade and investment relations took a hit. For the well-being of the Chinese and American people and the economic development of the two countries, both sides deemed it necessary to come to the negotiating table to seek a solution through consultation, said the white paper titled China's Position on the China-US Economic and Trade Consultations, released by the State Council Information Office.

China had advocated resolving economic and trade friction through negotiation and consultation from the start. In early February 2018, the US government expressed the wish that China could send a high-level delegation to the US to engage in economic and trade consultation.

Demonstrating great goodwill and positive efforts, China held several rounds of high-level economic and trade consultations with the US, characterized by in-depth exchanges of views on trade imbalance among other major issues. The two sides made substantial progress as they reached preliminary consensus on expanding China's imports of agricultural and energy products from the US. However, on March 22, 2018, the US government unveiled the so-called Report on Section 301 Investigation of China, falsely accusing China of "IP theft" and "forced technology transfer," and subsequently announced an additional tariff of 25 percent on US$50 billion of Chinese exports to the US, according to the white paper.

Taking a big-picture view of the bilateral relationship, the Chinese government sent a working team again to the US to engage in genuine consultations. On May 19, 2018, China and the US issued a joint statement, agreeing to refrain from fighting a trade war, to continue high-level communications, and to actively seek solutions to respective economic and trade concerns. The US publicly announced that it would suspend the plan for additional tariffs on Chinese goods. On May 29, 2018, despite the opposition of its domestic business community and the general public, the US administration tore up the consensus just ten days after the joint statement, gratuitously criticizing China's economic system and trade policy, while announcing the resumption of the tariff program. Starting from early July 2018, in three steps, the US imposed additional tariffs of 25 percent on Chinese exports worth US$50 billion, and additional tariffs of 10 percent on US$200 billion of Chinese exports, which, according to the US, would be raised to 25 percent on January 1, 2019.

In addition, the US threatened further tariffs on all remaining Chinese exports, leading to quick escalation of the economic and trade friction between the two countries. In defense of its national dignity and its people's interests, China had to respond in kind and raised tariffs on imports worth US$110 billion from the US.

On November 1, 2018, US President Donald Trump had a telephone conversation with Chinese President Xi Jinping and proposed a summit meeting. On December 1 the two presidents had a meeting on the margins of the G20 Summit in Argentina. In accordance with their important consensus on economic and trade issues, the two sides agreed to halt new additional tariffs for 90 days to allow for intensive talks geared toward the full elimination of all additional tariffs. In the ensuing 90 days, the working teams of China and the US held three rounds of high-level consultations in Beijing and Washington D.C., reaching preliminary consensus on many matters of principle for the China-US economic and trade deal. On February 25, 2019, the US announced the postponement of the additional tariffs scheduled for March 1 on US$200 billion of Chinese exports to the US. From late March to early April, the working teams of the two countries held another three rounds of high-level consultations and made substantial progress.

Following numerous rounds of consultations, the two countries had agreed on most of the issues. Regarding the remaining issues, the Chinese government urged mutual understanding and compromise for solutions to be found, the white paper said.

But the more the US government is offered, the more it wants. Resorting to intimidation and coercion, it persisted with exorbitant demands, maintained the additional tariffs imposed since the friction began, and insisted on including mandatory requirements concerning China's sovereign affairs in the deal, which only served to delay the resolution of remaining differences. On May 6, 2019, the US irresponsibly accused China of backtracking on its position to shift the blame for the inconclusive talks onto China. Despite China's fierce opposition, the US raised the additional tariffs on US$200 billion of Chinese exports to the US from 10 percent to 25 percent, which represented a serious setback to the economic and trade consultations. On May 13 the US announced that it had launched procedures to slap additional tariffs on remaining Chinese goods, which are worth around US$300 billion.

These acts contradicted the agreement reached by the two presidents to ease friction through consultation -- and the expectations of people around the world -- casting a shadow over the bilateral economic and trade consultations and world economic growth. In defense of its own interests, China had to take tariff measures in response, the white paper said.