This past week, CTM covered the following issues.

China has a new policy on supply chain security that establishes a formal legal framework for monitoring risks, protecting key sectors, and responding to foreign measures perceived as threatening China’s supply chain security. 

At this week's press conference, China's Ministry of Commerce detailed a new state-led initiative "Export to China," aiming at balancing trade flows, while navigating a delicate relationship with the West.

China’s government unveiled guidelines to accelerate the development of a nationwide "science and technology insurance system," aiming to cushion risks in high-stakes innovation projects and bolster self-reliance in strategic fields amid escalating U.S. technology curbs.

Turning to the U.S., the Trump administration imposed 100% tariffs on patented pharmaceutical products and ingredients following its Section 232 investigation. Imports of pharmaceuticals from China are largely generics, though, and may not feel much impact from these tariffs in the near term.

A U.S. safeguards investigation on quartz products has found that increased imports are causing serious injury to U.S. producers, and has now moved to the remedy phase to determine what tariffs/quotas should be applied. The investigation follows up on a previous anti-dumping/countervailing duty investigation on imports from China, and seeks to address concerns about products being transshipped from other countries.

At a think tank event, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer offered a number of comments on U.S.-China trade issues as part of a discussion of the upcoming visit by President Trump to China.

New bipartisan proposals in Congress would significantly widen the legal reach of U.S. semiconductor export controls by pressuring allied governments to adopt comparable restrictions on chipmaking equipment, while authorizing broader U.S. extraterritorial controls if they do not.

At a meeting of the Canadian Parliament's Standing Committee on Industry and Technology in late March, Members of Parliament spoke with experts about the possible benefits and risks of Chinese trade and investment in the EV sector, following the Carney government's deal to allow imports of Chinese EVs and discussion of Chinese investment in the sector.

Canadian Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne visited China to "meet with government and business leaders" and "build strategic partnerships and attract new investments as part of Canada’s broader diversification imperative."