China Announces Punishments for Intellectual-Property Theft; Bloomberg, December 4, 2018

Bloomberg; China Announces Punishments for Intellectual-Property Theft

'China announced an array of punishments that could restrict companies’ access to borrowing and state-funding support over intellectual-property theft, a key sticking point in its trade conflict with the U.S.

News of the measures came just days after President Xi Jinping promised to resolve the U.S.’s “reasonable concerns” about IP practices in a statement after meeting President Donald Trump at the Group of 20 summit on Saturday in Argentina. The White House said the sides agreed to hold off on tariff action for at least 90 days as they negotiate to resolve specific U.S. complaints.

China set out a total of 38 different punishments to be applied to IP violations, starting this month. The document, dated Nov. 21, was released Tuesday by the National Development and Reform Commission and signed by various government bodies, including the central bank and supreme court.

“I think it’s potentially significant if they are implemented and result in a reduction in IP theft,” Scott Kennedy, a China expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. “We’ve been down this road with China many times on IP. The attention companies pay to IP theft has risen dramatically, and despite the great attention it’s getting the violations have increased.”"

Intellectual Property to Take Center Stage as Trump and Xi Meet; The New York Times, November 28, 2018

Alan Rappeport, The New York Times;

Intellectual Property to Take Center Stage as Trump and Xi Meet

"When President Trump and President Xi Jinping of China sit down to talk trade this week at the Group of 20 summit meeting, their negotiations are likely to be framed by a highly charged topic: the White House’s insistence that China routinely steals American technology and intellectual property."