MNI POLICY: Low China Buys Not Big Issue Phase 1: Ex-PBOC Offl

     BEIJING (MNI) - The size of China's current imports from the U.S. are not

good but they are not a big issue for the phase one trade deal and the Sino-U.S.

relationship, a leading former official with People's Bank of China and

International Monetary Fund said.

     Zhu Min, now head of the National Financial Research Institute at Tsinghua

University, admitted that it would be "quite difficult" for China to reach the

mandated imports from the U.S. in the Phase One trade deal under current

circumstances.

     China's imports from the U.S. have largely fallen behind phase one

requirements due to the fast-falling demand of China and the sapped production

capacities of the U.S. as the Covid slump weighs, Zhu said.

     In the first quarter, China only imported USD700 million OF energy products

from the U.S., Zhu estimated. The number is well below the USD26.5 billion of

promises made by China in the deal.

     "The good news is that both sides sat down to talk," said Zhu at a virtual

conference of World Peace Forum held by Tsing University on Wednesday.

     China remains fully committed to fulfilling and implementing the phase one

deal and the U.S. also appreciated the efforts of China in improving

intellectual property protection and financial sector opening, he added.

     Over last weekend, China handed a banking card clearing service license to

American Express, making the U.S. company the first foreign player to enter the

Chinese market.

--MNI Beijing Bureau; +86 (10) 8532-5998; email: archie.zhang@marketnews.com

--MNI London Bureau; tel: +44 203-586-2225; email: les.commons@marketnews.com

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