© AP
CHINA-MAINE- LOBSTERS
China has reneged on its promise to buy more Maine lobsters under a deal that opened the door to resolving a trade war under the former president. Donald TrumpMaine congressional leaders said.
Maine’s lobster industry was hit by retaliatory tariffs China imposed in 2018 and failed to make significant export gains following the Chinese government pledged to buy an additional $200 billion worth of products from the United States, he said. the delegation.
Under the “Phase One Agreement,” China was supposed to increase its purchases above 2017 levels, but China “has practically not purchased more lobsters than 2017 levels,” according to a joint letter issued Thursday. by Maine Senator Angus King, an independent, and Democratic congressmen Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden.
The three urged US Trade Representative Katherine Tai to “hold China accountable for its purchase commitments.”
The Republican Senator Susan Collinsof Maine, had sent a letter earlier raising the same concern and calling for “immediate and appropriate action.”
Live Maine lobster sales to China fell in the year following the tariffs were imposed on the product in July 2018, and China decided to switch its lobster purchases to Canadian traders, according to industry officials.
The fight over the lobsters came following United States trade representatives accused Beijing of not fulfilling the promises of opening markets that it made when joining the World Trade Organization. China denied the accusations.