G7 Targets China’s Export Surge With IMF Data as Bessent Defends U.S. Tariff Wall
Updated
Updated · Reuters · May 19
G7 Targets China’s Export Surge With IMF Data as Bessent Defends U.S. Tariff Wall
16 articles · Updated · Reuters · May 19
Paris talks among G7 finance leaders centered on using IMF data to press China over global imbalances, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview after the meeting.
Bessent argued China’s export push—especially in electric vehicles—would spill into Europe, Japan, Canada, Britain and Australia after U.S. tariffs redirected those goods away from the American market.
He said high-end Chinese exports could not be absorbed by the Global South, warning that without trade protections they would damage other advanced economies.
The comments add detail to the G7’s earlier agreement that action is needed on unsustainable imbalances, even though ministers stopped short of announcing specific countermeasures.
Bessent also urged tighter Iran sanctions enforcement, calling on Europe to close Iranian bank branches and on Asian countries to police the tanker shadow fleet more aggressively.
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