Politico | Donald Trump’s allies push him to resist a quick trade deal with China
- Trump’s failure to clinch a deal on denuclearisation with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has fuelled speculation the president might be more primed to prove himself as deal maker-in-chief with China
- But China hawks – including Trump’s lead trade negotiator, Robert Lighthizer – have been suggesting a trade pact is still a ways away
US President Donald Trump is growing closer to sealing a trade deal with China, but some advisers are urging the White House not to rush it in the interest of calming nerves on Wall Street.
Instead, China hawks are pushing for an agreement that would continue to keep financial markets on edge with an ever-present threat of tariffs and the prospect for more trade strife between the two economic powers.
“Trump has done what everyone said was impossible – catch the Chinese off guard. They never thought he would use the weapons at hand. Now Wall Street is convincing him 'he needs a win' – that's the insidious nature of this,” Steve Bannon, Trump’s former senior adviser, told POLITICO.
As Trump prepares to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month, the pressure is on the president to strike a deal that continues to give the US the upper hand with Beijing.
That includes pressing to allow the US to re-impose tariffs while denying Beijing the opportunity to retaliate with counteractions.
Mixed messages on the status of an agreement have been coming from two sides close to the White House: advisers who want to calm the markets and at the same time appease Trump’s fixation on stock performance, including National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, have been expressing optimism in recent days that a deal is almost completed.
But China hawks – including Trump’s lead trade negotiator, Robert Lighthizer – have been suggesting a pact is still a ways away.