G20 agrees to condemn using food as trade pressure, but no consensus on overcapacity or forced labour
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US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the G20 trade ministers' meeting reached a joint agreement condemning the use of food products as a tool of trade pressure or coercion, but could not reach consensus on issuing a statement condemning the use of forced labour in supply chains, nor on addressing structural overcapacity in the industrial sector. Greer told reporters that trade ministers from several countries attending the meeting in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, voiced concern over industrial overcapacity, especially from China, which has flooded global markets with cheap exports, hurting manufacturing in various countries, and said the United States therefore decided to use unilateral tariff measures to protect its domestic industry. Although Greer did not name the countries that objected, it is well known that China has previously opposed similar joint statements at a G20 finance leaders' meeting last month in Asheville, North Carolina. Separately, Maroš Šefčovič, the European Union's commissioner for trade and economic security, said he supports pushing for stronger action to address overcapacity, which has intensified over the past decade, to the point that Chinese exports have become a direct threat to Europe's core industries, especially automobiles and steel. China denies the allegations and counters that Western countries raise the issue as a pretext to justify protectionist trade measures. The G20 meeting is expected to issue a formal joint statement on Thursday night local time.