Subsidies, supply chains, and China

More countries are adopting industrial policies and incentives to reshore production. Japan, for example, is planning subsidies to bolster its supply chains in critical areas, Nikkei Asia reports. How will similar policies impact global commerce? The Economist offers answers in its special report on business and the state.

Speaking of supply chains, China’s zero-Covid policy is likely to keep them snarled, reports the Financial Times.

The United States’ China policy remains under scrutiny. Is President Biden boxed in on China, asks Jenny Leonard of Bloomberg. Why is China’s trade surplus higher than ever, asks the New York Times. Would removing tariffs on Chinese imports significantly impact inflation? Not necessarily, according to the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE).

Tailoring trade remedies to address the challenge of China’s practices more directly may help save the embattled dispute settlement regime of the World Trade Organization (WTO), explains another PIIE report.

Many governments are focused on digital trade and possible supportive policies. The Congressional Research Service helps us to understand US trade policy on digital trade.

Succeeding in digital trade is certainly one challenge facing the world’s least developed countries. A new WTO report outlines the participation of low-income economies in global trade and the hurdles they try to overcome.