A Chinese economist explains what we get wrong about the trade war.

Byline: Ceri Parker

It's one of the biggest threats to the global economy, and it could finally be near a resolution: the trade war between China and the United States.

President Trump has said that the two economic superpowers are close to a deal to end a lingering dispute that has cast a shadow on the outlook for the entire economy. Between them, the nations account for 40% of global GDP.

Fearful that China's rise threatens livelihoods in the United States and anxious to protect the intellectual property of American companies, President Trump slapped tariffs on $250bn worth of Chinese goods in 2018. China, meanwhile, retaliated with duties on $110bn of US products.

The US had threatened to escalate the situation by increasing tariff rates on $200bn worth of Chinese imports from 10% to 25% if China didn't reach an agreement by March 1. Instead, President Trump is now planning a summit with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping.

Beyond the negotiations and the sparring, what are the economic ties between the two countries? And what does the feud look like from China's perspective?

At the World Economic Forum's Annual Meeting in January 2019, I spoke to Keyu Jin, a professor at the London School of Economics who is from Beijing and specialises in the Chinese economy. Below is an edited transcript.

What are America's complaints against China?

There are multiple areas of concern. One is how much China is exporting versus how much it is importing from the US, whether China is really displacing jobs in manufacturing in the US, and whether there are forced technology transfers for American firms that work in China, and of course, intellectual property protection.

There are many areas that the US has attacked China on in terms of trade, but in my opinion these short-term issues are really a reflection of the deeper-rooted competition and rivalry that has become the defining characteristic of these two countries.

What is the trade surplus and why is it problematic?

President Trump has focussed recently on the trade surplus that China runs against the US. When a country runs a trade surplus it is simply exporting more than it is importing.

Now it's true that in the last 20 years, China has turned itself into a manufacturing and industrial powerhouse and has grown significantly based on exporting its products. American consumers benefit from cheaper imports from China, whether of toys, clothes, sneakers or furniture. The main concern is that, if China is...