U.S. Commerce Secretary ‘Very Concerned’ about China Policy

(Industry Week – Agence France-Presse)

Beijing’s policies in favor of local innovation and technology could give domestic firms a “leg up” over foreign rivals in clean energy market.

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said on May 17 he was “very concerned” about Chinese policies that could limit foreign firms’ access to the country’s ballooning clean energy market. Kicking off his first trade mission to China, Locke said Beijing’s policies in favor of local innovation and technology could give domestic firms a “leg up” over foreign rivals and pledged to raise the issue with Chinese officials.

“We’re very concerned about that,” Locke said. He also said that the policy was “made without any input from affected businesses and really not subject to any public comment.”

The issue comes ahead of key Sino-U.S. talks scheduled for next week in Beijing, to be attended by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Locke and other key officials. Read more here.