Economists see ulterior motive in US trade, tariff moves

Washington has resorted to raising tariffs on Chinese goods and restricting Chinese telecom giant Huawei to undermine China's economic growth and maintain the United States' edge in economic development, Russian economists said.

"The recent standoff between China and the US is obviously an attempt by the latter to maintain its dominant role in world economy, through holding back China's development," said Alexander Lomanov, chief research fellow of Primakov National Research Institute of World Economy and International Relations of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Fedor Voytolovskiy, director of the Russian institute, also said that the recent US trade and tariff moves are aimed at maintaining its technological leadership.