TMTPost -- U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen reiterated a stance that the United States does not stand for decoupling from China atstart of her six-day visit to the world’s second largest economy.

Credit：CGTN

“With a large and growing middle-class, China represents a huge market for American manufacturers and other firms. President Biden and I firmly reject the idea that the United States should decouple from China. The full economic separation is neither practice nor desirable,” Yellen told representatives of the American business community at an event hosted by American Chamber of Commerce in the People's Republic of China (AmCham China) on Friday, reported the state media China Central Television (CCTV).

Yellen arrived in Guangzhou that day as the first stop of her trip from April 3 to 9. The event is one of her first scheduled opportunities for bilateral engagements. At the beginning of her speech to representatives of businesses, Yellen highlighted significance of Guangzhou in the trade history of China. “Guagnzhou holds the unique position in Chinese economic history. Today, Guangzhou remains the top destination for foreign investments in China, including for Fortune 500 companies,” Yellen said. “It is a fitting place for me to emphasize the strong economic ties between the United States and China.” 

“I’ve heard from many American business executives that operating in China can be challenging,” Yellen said at the event. The Secretary said China has pursued “unfair economic practices, including imposing barriers to access for foreign firms and taking coercive actions against American companies”, Bloomberg cited her speech. She citied a recent survey byAmCham China that found that a third of American firms in China say they have experienced unfair treatment compared with local competitors, urging to cease unfair practices as improving the business climate would benefit China. 

During her first stop in Guangzhou on Friday, Yellen held talks with Wang Weizhong, the governor of Guangdong Province. Yellen told Wang that this trip focused on achieving common interests between China and the United States through healthy economic relations, but a healthy relationship must provide a level playing field for American businesses and workers. She stressed that open and direct communication channels must be maintained in areas where China and the United States have differences, including China's industrial overcapacity, which the U.S. and other foreign countries are concerned about for the excess capacity could cause global spillovers.

Later that day, Yellen met with China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng. China wants to “create a favorable environment for businesses and will deliver benefits to our two countries and our two peoples,” He said ahead of the meeting. CCTV reported He said the main task of their meeting is to  implement the important consensus reached by heads of the two states at their meeting and phone call, further in depth discussion about important economic and financial issues between China and the United States and the whole world, and make appropriate responses to some key concerns in China-U.S. economic relations. In the past few months, the China-US economic and financial working group we established has continued to meet and has made progress on some critical and difficult issues, Yellen said.

According to the detailed schedule released by the U.S. Department of the Treasury (USDT),  Yellen will continue and then conclude a series of bilateral meetings with Vice Premier He On Saturday, April 6. Yellen will depart Guangzhou for Beijing in the afternoon. On Sunday, April 7, Yellen will participate in a bilateral meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang. Later that day, she will meet with Beijing Mayor Yin Yong and meet with students and professors at Peking University. In the evening, the Secretary will participate in a bilateral meeting with Finance Minister Lan Fo’an. While in Beijing, Yellen will also meet with leading Chinese economists.

On Monday, April 8, Yellen will meet with former Vice Premier Liu He of the People’s Republic of China. Later, she will hold a bilateral meeting with People’s Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng. In the afternoon, Yellen will hold a press conference, during which she will deliver remarks discussing her trip to China. On Tuesday, April 9, Secretary Yellen will depart Beijing and arrive in Washington, DC. in the evening.