US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen shakes hands with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng before a dinner in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, on April 5, 2024.
Pedro Pardo | AFP | Getty Images
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen's comments on China's excess manufacturing capacity are aimed at reframing the “China threat” narrative and appear to create a pretext for more protectionist policies by the United States, Chinese state media said.
China's official Xinhua news agency said in an editorial late on Friday evening that such comments seek to undermine China's domestic growth and international cooperation, and that Washington should focus on promoting innovation and competitiveness within its borders rather than resorting to fearmongering.
Concerns are growing about the global economic fallout from China's excess manufacturing capacity, Yellen told American businessmen in Guangzhou, a southern export hub, on Friday, making the issue a focus of her four days of meetings with Chinese officials.
Citing China's overproduction of electric cars, solar panels, semiconductors and other goods that are flowing into global markets in the face of declining demand in the Chinese domestic market, Yellen said this is not healthy for China and hurts producers in other countries.
“Talk about China’s excess capacity in the clean energy sector also suggests creating a pretext to introduce more protectionist policies to protect American companies,” Xinhua said.
“After all, the world now knows that Washington will not hesitate to show its protectionist teeth under the guise of national security in areas where its superiority is being challenged.”
Yellen met with Vice Premier He Leveng and Governor of Guangdong Province Wang Weizhong in Guangzhou after arriving in China late Thursday.
On Saturday, she is scheduled to travel to Beijing, where she will meet with officials including Premier Li Qiang and People's Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng until Monday, according to a Treasury Department press adviser.
