Expert: How much will Xi's four points ease the Sino-US trade tensions?

Chinese President Xi Jinping promised to adopt four major measures, including broadening market access, to pursue further opening during his keynote speech at the Boao Forum for Asia on Tuesday, which has echoed by US President Donald Trump with “kind words”.

“Very thankful for President Xi of China’s kind words on tariffs and automobile barriers,” Trump said on Twitter. “Also, his enlightenment on intellectual property and technology transfers. We will make great progress together!”

This is another time the US president changed his “tough attitude” as he always does since the Sino-US trade tensions began.

Maybe Trump thought that President Xi’s words demonstrating that China wants to send a signal to ease the trade tension between China and US, but is this really the case?

“I have to clarify that that is not really responding to the pressure that is exercised on China from Trump administration, because it is really the Chinese strategic agenda to further open its door,” said Liu Baocheng, professor at the University of International Business and Economics, in an interview with CGTN.

Liu said that there are “two reasons” for President Xi’s four points proposes. One is China’s economy, which is going to such a stage to upgrade itself, another reason is that China is going to pursue better innovation by collaborating more technological cooperation with the rest of the world. Because China needs global participation in the Chinese financial market to provide continuous fuel to the locomotive, which can really move the Chinese economy to a new stage of development.

President Xi delivers a keynote speech at the ‍ Boao Forum for Asia 2018 in Boao, Hainan Province, Apr. 10, 2018./VCG Photo

In Liu’s opinion, China can no longer rely on the democratic dividend provided by rural workers, and can no longer sanctify the environmental quality simply for economic growth. This helps to shape a better picture of China to the rest of the world.

However, the US should not be over optimistic as these issues for easing tensions will not be their stand.

“The US is pounding China on the trade deficit suffers for the exchange of goods, of the tangible goods, but China is more open now for those intangible goods, in terms of finance, logistic service and funds operation," Liu said.

"It does really offer opportunity for them to make good money in China, and also for the protection of the intellectual property rights, so it does help. But the trade deficit in the eye of the United States’ administration is lying more in the goods,” Liu added.

(CGTN)