Scott Bessent says China blocked G20 joint communique over trade surplus dispute

At the G20 finance meetings in Asheville, North Carolina, China blocked a unanimous joint communique by dissenting from a statement opposing cheap exports from non-market economies. According to U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, China was the sole objector to G20 language targeting persistent trade surpluses and non-market policies. China also opposed paragraphs concerning IMF surveillance, external debt, and shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, which Bessent claims will be bypassed by pipelines within two years.

China blocks G20 communique

• ▪United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that China prevented the Group of 20 from issuing a unanimous joint communique during the G20 finance meetings in Asheville, North Carolina
• ▪China was the only Group of 20 member to dissent from a joint statement opposing non-market based economies pushing out a never-ending stream of cheap exports

China trade surplus dispute

• ▪The G20 statement paragraph opposed by China called for countries with excessive and persistent external surpluses to remove distortions that constrain domestic consumption and result in an overreliance on exports
• ▪The G20 statement released by the United States Treasury Department included a footnote specifying that China objected to a paragraph agreeing that countries should eliminate non-market policies and practices that exacerbate imbalances

IMF surveillance objections

• ▪China opposed G20 statement paragraphs singling out countries where a meaningful share of external debt is owed to Group of 20 members
• ▪China opposed G20 statement paragraphs praising the International Monetary Fund's surveillance of global imbalances

Strait of Hormuz disruptions

• ▪China objected to a G20 statement paragraph expressing concern about continuing shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz
• ▪United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on September 1, 2026 that the Strait of Hormuz will be bypassed by oil pipelines and become like a worthless piece of water in two years

G20 Asheville meeting

• ▪The Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs held meetings in Asheville, North Carolina, concluding on September 1, 2026
• ▪United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent vowed ahead of the G20 Asheville meetings to return the conversation among global economic policymakers to the core subject of boosting growth

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