Over the years, the United States and China have engaged in multiple trade agreements that have helped shape their economic relationship. The history of US-China trade agreements has been marked by both cooperation and tension, with each country seeking to protect their own interests.
The two countries first established diplomatic relations in 1979, but it wasn`t until the 1990s that trade between the two nations began to increase significantly. The first major US-China trade agreement was signed in 1999, known as the US-China Relations Act of 2000. This agreement granted China Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with the United States, allowing China to gain access to lower tariffs and greater import/export opportunities.
In 2001, China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO), which required the country to significantly reduce tariffs and open its markets to foreign competition. This move was seen as a major win for the US, as it allowed American companies greater access to the Chinese market. However, in the years following China`s entry into the WTO, tensions grew between the US and China as American companies struggled with intellectual property theft and other unfair trade practices.
In 2005, the US and China signed the Strategic Economic Dialogue (SED), which aimed to address trade imbalances and other economic issues between the two nations. The SED helped establish a more cooperative relationship between the two countries and served as a forum for ongoing negotiations.
In 2007, the US and China signed the US-China Investment Treaty (BIT), which sought to protect American companies investing in China. However, the treaty was never ratified by the US Senate, and negotiations ultimately stalled.
More recently, in 2020, the US and China signed the Phase One trade deal, which included provisions for China to purchase more US goods and services and address intellectual property concerns. However, tensions between the two countries have continued to escalate, with both sides imposing tariffs on each other`s goods and technology in an ongoing trade war.
In conclusion, the history of US-China trade agreements is a complex one, marked by both cooperation and tension. While each agreement aimed to improve economic relations between the two countries, disputes over intellectual property theft, market access, and other issues have led to ongoing conflict. It remains to be seen how future trade agreements will impact the US-China economic relationship.