China commerce ministry says some countries' unilateralism poses challenge to global trade

BEIJING (Reuters) - China’s commerce ministry, taking aim at the United States, said on Thursday that some countries’ unilateralism is an unprecedented challenge to global trade.

The comment from Ministry of Commerce spokesman Gao Feng at a news conference was in response to a question about recent trade actions taken by the United States.

The administration of US President Donald Trump has begun to launch trade investigations under statutes seldom used in the World Trade Organization (WTO) era, including a “Section 301” probe of China’s intellectual property practices.

China’s commerce ministry on Monday unveiled a four-month crackdown, running from September until the end of 2017, to protect the intellectual property rights of companies with foreign investors.

Gao also said China will release as soon as possible guidelines to reduce foreign investment restrictions in new energy vehicles.