China ready to discuss tariffs and subsidies with US at WTO

By Olivia Le Poidevin

GENEVA (Reuters) -China is ready to have discussions about trade policies, including tariffs and subsidies, that Washington has identified as obstacles to reforming the World Trade Organization, a senior delegate at China's mission to the WTO said.

China had heard "every word" the U.S. had said at the WTO about its trade practices and is open to discussing tariffs, industrial policy and some benefits it gains from its developing country status, as part of broader conversations on reform ahead of a 2026 ministerial meeting in Cameroon, the delegate said.

The official declined to be identified. China's mission does not publicly identify delegates below ambassador rank. China recalled its WTO ambassador in April to become a trade negotiator and the vacant position has yet to be filled.

The delegate's remarks follow months of trade tension between the world's two largest economies over sweeping tariffs imposed by the U.S. and retaliatory measures by China.

Washington argues there can be no meaningful WTO reform until China and other major economies relinquish privileges known as Special and Differential Treatment (SDT) granted to developing countries, which the U.S. says give them an unfair advantage.

Some major economies, including China and Saudi Arabia, self-identify as developing countries, granting them access to SDT benefits such as setting higher tariffs and using subsidies.

The delegate said China's developing country status was non-negotiable, but it might forgo SDT in upcoming negotiations, as it did recently on fisheries and domestic regulations.

"I see that in the coming negotiations, generally speaking, I don't think China will ask for the SDT," the delegate told Reuters.

However, former WTO spokesperson Keith M. Rockwell, a senior research fellow at the Hinrich Foundation, was sceptical that China would fully relinquish SDT in areas like agriculture.

The U.S. opposes countries picking and choosing SDT benefits, and wants China to completely renounce them.

The delegate said China was open to discussing subsidies to ensure a fairer playing field provided it was met with goodwill in return. But it would not accept any attempts to try to change its economic system, they added.

Following positive trade talks in Geneva and London, China indicated openness towards discussing tariffs within the WTO.

"We welcome the U.S. to come back to the WTO," the delegate said. "We are ready to renegotiate on Article 28 if the U.S. raises their requests here at the WTO."

Article 28 of the WTO Agreement allows members to modify tariff commitments under certain conditions, providing a potential pathway for adjustments.

(Reporting by Olivia Le PoidevinEditing by Dave Graham and Ros Russell)