Janet Yellen ‘probably done’ when Biden ends term, may meet Chinese counterpart soon
The US Treasury secretary says the US-China relationship ‘needs to be prioritised and nurtured’ by the next administration
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Saturday that she is “probably done” serving at the highest levels of government after US President Joe Biden’s term ends in January, but is likely meet again soon with her Chinese counterpart.
Asked at the Texas Tribune Festival in Austin, Texas whether she was “done” when a new administration takes over in January, or might continue in her job or take on a new administration role, Yellen said: “Probably done, but … we’ll see.”
The comments are the closest that Yellen, 78, has come to announcing her future plans as the presidential race between US Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump heats up. Yellen has been the first woman to serve as Treasury Secretary, Federal Reserve Chair and director of the White House National Economic Council.
Yellen told the event in Austin that she still has a lot of work to do at Treasury in coming months, including another likely meeting with Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng, her Beijing counterpart, to try to manage an often tense relationship.
The two met in April in Beijing, where Yellen warned China to rein in excess industrial capacity ahead of Biden’s decision to impose steep tariff increases on Chinese-made electric vehicles, batteries, solar products and semiconductors.
Yellen said she would welcome a visit to the US but also may return to China herself, adding: “My guess is that we will have, one way or another, a visit.”
