US says falling trade with China could be positive

BBC: The steep drop in trade with China could be a positive development, the United States’ top trade official has told the BBC.
Katherine Tai said it “isn’t necessarily negative. It could be a positive indication of diversification on both sides”.
The amount of goods the world’s two biggest economies sold to each other fell 17 percent last year.
It comes amid deepening divisions in the global economy. Those differences were exposed again with the US announcing an investigation in to what it said was a potential national security risk from cars made in China, citing fears that tech-connected cars could collect personal data or be controlled remotely.

Chinese car companies have been expanding their presence in other parts of the world but have virtually no presence in the US, where they already face import duties of 25 percent.
The White House described its action as “unprecedented” and a fair response to Chinese policies which impose restrictions on foreign car companies.
Last year the amount of goods the US bought from China fell just over 20 percent to US $ 427 billion, with a 4 percent fall the other way to just under US $ 148 billion (£117 billion).