Trump administration suspends trade complaint against China

WASHINGTON – The Trump administration has suspended a complaint it had made against China to the World Trade Organization, a shift that might signal a slight opening in the administration’s trade war with Beijing.

The WTO says it’s granted a request to suspend work until December on the administration’s complaint that Beijing has failed to safeguard the intellectual property of U.S. companies operating in China — a major issue in the trade war. The Geneva-based WTO weighs disputes between its members, and if a country prevails, it can impose tariffs on imports from the other. President Donald Trump has already imposed tariffs on many Chinese goods.

The WTO’s announcement did not say why the administration had made the request, and the U.S. trade representative’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment.