US warns of continuing efforts against restrictive trade

US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin said here on Friday that Washington would continue its "efforts to address restrictive trade practices around the world".

"For our part, the US is undertaking efforts to address restrictive trade practices around the world that are impeding stronger and more balanced US and global growth," Mnuchin said in a speech at the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in this Indonesian resort island.

Mnuchin's remarks were clearly directed at China amid rising trade tensions triggered by the US imposition of multi-million dollar tariffs on Chinese imports, reports Efe news.

"We encourage other countries to examine their policies and take steps to help rebalance global trading relationships," he added.

The US secretary further assured Washington's goal is "to achieve more free, fair, and reciprocal trade and to ensure a level playing field for US firms" with "all of our partners, including China".

During the IMF meeting, Mnuchin met China's central bank governor Yi Gang to exchange views on "relevant financial and economic issues".

The current trade tensions, especially the one arising from US President Donald Trump's decision to levy taxes worth over $200 billion on Chinese imports and the subsequent reprisals from Beijing, are the main focus of the talks at this IMF-World Bank meeting, which is scheduled to conclude on Sunday.

On Tuesday, the IMF published a new report on macroeconomic projections revising its global growth forecasts down to 3.7 per cent for 2018 and the following year due to doubts surrounding the trade dispute between the two largest economies in the world.

--IANS

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