https://www.scmp.com/rss/326747/feed Breaking news and analysis on the US-China trade war, its history and timeline, and the impact on the global economy. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Josephine Ma Josephine Ma William Klein worked for more than two decades as a US diplomat, including in several senior roles at the United States’ embassy in Beijing from 2016 to 2021. He worked at the American Institute in Taiwan and on the US State Department’s China desk in Washington, and occupied US diplomatic posts in South Asia, the Middle East and the former Soviet Union. He is based in the Berlin office of FGS Global, a consultancy with a focus on US-China and EU-China relationships. SCMP Plus readers get early... https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347242/inside-look-trump-xi-summits-ex-diplomat-william-klein?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china/diplomacy/article/3347242/inside-look-trump-xi-summits-ex-diplomat-william-klein?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Mar 2026 04:30:08 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Washington’s request to reschedule US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing reflects the reality that the war in Iran has not followed the script. It was anticipated that superior American power would result in a quick victory over Iran, which China considers a strategic partner and oil supplier, well ahead of a summit with President Xi Jinping. The United States has done all the running in the preparations for the visit, including announcing the dates of March 31 to April 2. China had made... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3346909/china-policy-stay-course-despite-delay-xi-trump-summit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3346909/china-policy-stay-course-despite-delay-xi-trump-summit?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 17 Mar 2026 23:15:11 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang The bombs falling on Iran have extinguished any remaining doubt. The US-Israeli military campaign has ignited a major regional war. This explosion of violence is the ultimate rebuke to a central promise of US President Donald Trump’s second term: that America could disengage from distant quagmires to focus on confronting China. Over a year into this administration, the strategic picture affirms the conclusion I reached last summer: America’s hoped-for single-minded containment of China lies in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345177/china-waits-and-watches-us-fights-all-its-tigers-once?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3345177/china-waits-and-watches-us-fights-all-its-tigers-once?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Mar 2026 01:30:09 +0000 Meredith Chen Meredith Chen Abraham Newman is an American political scientist and a professor in the School of Foreign Service and Department of Government at Georgetown University. His research focuses on the ways in which economic interdependence and globalisation have transformed international politics. Along with Henry Farrell, he is co-author of the book Underground Empire: How America Weaponised the World Economy, published in 2023. In this interview, he discusses how the concept of weaponised interdependence has... https://www.scmp.com/plus/economy/china-economy/article/3344287/how-can-world-resist-us-china-economic-coercion-abraham-newman-explains?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/economy/china-economy/article/3344287/how-can-world-resist-us-china-economic-coercion-abraham-newman-explains?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Feb 2026 03:24:58 +0000 Letters Letters Feel strongly about these letters, or any other aspects of the news? Share your views by emailing us your Letter to the Editor at letters@scmp.com or filling in this Google form. Submissions should not exceed 400 words At the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, the Hong Kong pavilion was flooded with meeting requests and was well attended by senior figures who a few years ago might have given it short shrift. Fractious transatlantic relations have signalled a growing impulse on the part of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3342086/hong-kongs-economic-comeback-best-answer-its-critics?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/letters/article/3342086/hong-kongs-economic-comeback-best-answer-its-critics?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 03:30:37 +0000 Wang Wen Wang Wen After a year of Trump 2.0, China has much to be thankful for. This is not an endorsement of US hegemony but an expression of confidence in China’s increased resilience – and an acknowledgement of the US policies that pushed China there. The Chinese government’s stance towards Trump 2.0 remains the same: to adhere to its own principles, respond rationally and look to turn any crisis into an opportunity. For a start, Trump 2.0’s tariff war on China has backfired. All it did was force China to... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3340739/how-trump-20-accelerated-chinas-push-tech-and-trade-resilience?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3340739/how-trump-20-accelerated-chinas-push-tech-and-trade-resilience?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 Jan 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Peiman Salehi Peiman Salehi The United States’ forcible removal of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro from power has reignited a debate over international law and sovereignty. But this risks obscuring a more consequential fact: global energy markets are not governed primarily by liberal market logic, but are shaped by geopolitical strategy. Venezuela matters less as a case in itself than as a signal of how energy is being repositioned amid intensifying US-China economic competition. For decades, many assumed that energy... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3338823/energy-markets-are-political-venezuela-latest-proof?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3338823/energy-markets-are-political-venezuela-latest-proof?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 07 Jan 2026 08:30:14 +0000 Kandy Wong Kandy Wong Daniel J. Kritenbrink is a partner at The Asia Group. Previously, Kritenbrink served in the United States government as assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs and ambassador to Vietnam. His diplomatic career spans three decades and includes assignments in Japan, China, Kuwait and Washington. In this interview, Kritenbrink discusses the many nuances of the US-China relationship, from cooperation to competition to rivalry, and argues both countries should weigh the... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3338374/be-realistic-about-us-china-ties-ex-diplomat-says-amid-trade-war-truce?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3338374/be-realistic-about-us-china-ties-ex-diplomat-says-amid-trade-war-truce?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 02:00:14 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang Historians are likely to point to 2025 as the watershed in China’s 21st century ascent, a year in which the People’s Liberation Army’s power projection matured across all domains, resetting the global balance of power. This seismic shift is underscored by an unmistakable admission: the US has formally acknowledged the limits of its global reach in its new national security strategy and begun a strategic recalibration away from undisputed hegemony. These military and strategic realities are... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3336668/2025-marked-end-pax-americanas-unipolar-moment?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3336668/2025-marked-end-pax-americanas-unipolar-moment?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 18 Dec 2025 21:30:07 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell It is almost eight years since US President Donald Trump first declared that “trade wars are good, and easy to win”. How much longer will it take him and his tariff hawks to eat those words, and acknowledge the crass economic illiteracy of that conviction? How high a price must everyone pay – in particular, US consumers – before he calls off his tariff war? As America’s Christmas shopping season gets into full swing, typically accounting for around one third of US retailers’ annual profits, the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3336113/us-christmas-shoppers-are-paying-high-price-trumps-tariffs?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3336113/us-christmas-shoppers-are-paying-high-price-trumps-tariffs?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2025 08:30:09 +0000 Peggy Ye Peggy Ye Global business sentiment towards China improved in the third quarter of 2025, led by a sharp rebound among US companies, but growing concerns in Japan over tensions with Beijing over Taiwan are dragging on the overall outlook, according to a Morgan Stanley report. The US investment bank’s AlphaWise Global MNC China Sentiment Index rose three points to 31, placing sentiment in the “slightly positive” range and signalling a gradual recovery in confidence towards operating and expanding in... https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3335025/us-lifts-china-sentiment-tensions-cloud-outlook-japan-report-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/3335025/us-lifts-china-sentiment-tensions-cloud-outlook-japan-report-says?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 03 Dec 2025 09:00:09 +0000 Anthony W.D. Anastasi Anthony W.D. Anastasi Earlier this month, the US Democrats, whom many had written off, swept the local and state elections. From Zohran Mandani becoming New York mayor and Abigail Spanberger becoming Virginia governor to two statewide wins in Georgia’s public service commissioner races, the Democrats had a good run. The winning message was, ironically, what lost them the last presidential election: affordability. President Donald Trump has since sounded the alarm that Republicans must reclaim the issue of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3333302/trump-cant-have-it-all-low-prices-booming-stocks-balanced-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3333302/trump-cant-have-it-all-low-prices-booming-stocks-balanced-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 24 Nov 2025 21:30:10 +0000 Ningrong Liu Ningrong Liu My recent visit to Mianyang, the second-largest city in Sichuan province, revealed a place little known despite being just a 90-minute drive from Chengdu. Its unique distinction lies in its high concentration of scientists – a legacy of its role as a central hub during the “Third Front Construction” from 1964 to 1978. This was a critical period when China relocated strategic industries inland to build a self-reliant economy against a backdrop of external threats. This era formed the second of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3333115/beyond-us-china-decoupling-self-reliance-now-global-movement?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3333115/beyond-us-china-decoupling-self-reliance-now-global-movement?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Nov 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Albert Bakhtizin Albert Bakhtizin This month, the Russian Academy of Sciences completed a study assessing the comprehensive strength of 193 countries across economic, technological, demographic, military, infrastructural and other dimensions. This annual assessment of national power is conducted using advanced methods of multivariate statistical analysis. The latest results, calculated for 2025 and 2026, show the global balance of power has finally shifted from the United States towards China. Also, several regional power cores... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3333151/power-balance-tips-china-world-needs-fairer-financial-system?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3333151/power-balance-tips-china-world-needs-fairer-financial-system?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Nov 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Terry Su Terry Su While the world’s attention is drawn to US President Donald Trump’s tug of war with China over trade tariffs and technological embargoes, a new development in the Ukraine war is catching the eye of geopolitical observers. Pokrovsk, a city in Donetsk Oblast, has emerged as the most critical flashpoint in Russia’s war on Ukraine. At the intersection of major supply highways and a key railway junction, it serves as a vital logistics hub for Ukrainian forces defending central and western Donetsk.... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3332846/russia-advances-and-trump-retreats-chinas-ascendancy-clear?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3332846/russia-advances-and-trump-retreats-chinas-ascendancy-clear?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Nov 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Samuel Porteous Samuel Porteous Regardless of the outcome of the challenge to US President Donald Trump’s powers under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act now before the Supreme Court, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has made clear the administration will continue to use national security rationales to enact its disruptive trade measures. It was not always thus. Nations have always had national security interests. Major powers have always engaged in espionage targeting adversaries – even allies. But since the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3332888/weaponising-national-security-trade-against-china-us-breeds-chaos?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3332888/weaponising-national-security-trade-against-china-us-breeds-chaos?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Nov 2025 08:30:10 +0000 David Okoronkwo David Okoronkwo After US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shook hands in Busan last month, the headlines highlighted smiles and tariff rollbacks. Washington hailed it as a “massive victory”, saying China had pledged to buy 12 million tonnes of American soybeans by January and at least 25 million tonnes annually for the next three years. Futures on the Chicago Board of Trade surged and farmers in the US Midwest cheered. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent declared that “our great soybean... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3332390/soybean-diplomacy-us-china-now-holds-remote-control?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3332390/soybean-diplomacy-us-china-now-holds-remote-control?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Nov 2025 21:30:09 +0000 Anthony Cheung Anthony Cheung Much to the relief of markets, US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping finally met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea. The friendly meeting indicates both sides prefer a mode of “controlled” confrontation. The bilateral relationship remains confrontational, nonetheless. Some give and take on trade certainly helps to de-escalate tensions, but China has no illusions about the US’ fundamental hostility. Trump prides himself on his... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3330915/china-will-find-its-own-modernisation-path-not-us-terms?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3330915/china-will-find-its-own-modernisation-path-not-us-terms?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 02 Nov 2025 01:30:10 +0000 Albert Bakhtizin Albert Bakhtizin US President Donald Trump has returned to a trademark policy in announcing a new round of trade confrontation that clearly echoes the conflict he launched in his first term. Officially, the trade war began on January 22, 2018, when he imposed a 30 per cent import tariff on solar panels. While such measures are usually justified by noble intentions – protecting domestic industries and reviving local manufacturing – in reality, trade wars are often driven by the desire to seize foreign markets and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3328864/given-its-rare-earth-vulnerability-us-cannot-risk-all-out-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3328864/given-its-rare-earth-vulnerability-us-cannot-risk-all-out-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 Oct 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Ningrong Liu Ningrong Liu As the world eagerly awaits a Xi-Trump meeting that could signal a potential resolution to the long-lasting US-China tariff war, Beijing has introduced its strictest export controls yet on rare earth elements and the related production technology. The announcement took US President Donald Trump by surprise; he decided to raise tariffs on Chinese goods by a further 100 per cent. From the start of this tariff war, Beijing has shown an ability for long-term strategy, positioning itself for a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3328816/chinas-counter-attacks-are-giving-trump-taste-his-own-medicine?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3328816/chinas-counter-attacks-are-giving-trump-taste-his-own-medicine?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Oct 2025 12:30:09 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Pragmatism prevails in the proposed TikTok deal between the United States and China, with US President Donald Trump declaring it meets his country’s national security requirements while allowing tens of millions of Americans to continue using the Chinese short-video app. Under the proposed terms of the deal, yet to be confirmed by Beijing, American investors will control around 80 per cent of the app in the US, leaving owner ByteDance and its affiliates with less than 20 per cent. This followed... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3327017/us-china-pragmatism-display-proposed-tiktok-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3327017/us-china-pragmatism-display-proposed-tiktok-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Sep 2025 23:15:12 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Phone calls between the leaders of China and the United States can leave a global following keen for more detailed accounts. The latest, the third this year between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, is no exception. They discussed topics ranging from trade frictions to a deal on the control of short-video app TikTok’s US operations. Trump described the call as “very productive”. Beijing said the talks were “pragmatic, positive and constructive”, but without confirming US reports of a TikTok deal.... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3326384/us-and-china-must-build-positive-xi-trump-call-stabilise-ties?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3326384/us-and-china-must-build-positive-xi-trump-call-stabilise-ties?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Sep 2025 23:14:14 +0000 Abishur Prakash Abishur Prakash Earlier this month, Anthropic, the American artificial intelligence company, entered the US-China fight. It barred companies from using its AI services if they were more than 50 per cent owned by Chinese entities. This was a double punch – China’s access to American technology hit another obstacle, and the global business world was prodded again to reject Chinese investment. Just a few months ago, Anthropic’s move would have knocked the wind out of China. But the recent Shanghai Cooperation... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3325174/chinas-moment-rewire-world-arriving-what-will-it-do?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3325174/chinas-moment-rewire-world-arriving-what-will-it-do?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Sep 2025 22:30:08 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The Brics emergency summit at which Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a speech was convened by Brazil to coordinate resistance to growing pressures from US President Donald Trump’s trade war. It did not turn into a forum for an open clash with the United States, as anticipated by some. But it would be a mistake to discount the importance of such meetings to a growing trading bloc in consolidating long-term resilience. Xi set the tone for the virtual summit, as he did at the recent Shanghai... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3324913/brics-looking-resilience-not-open-clash-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3324913/brics-looking-resilience-not-open-clash-us?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 09 Sep 2025 23:15:14 +0000 Ji Siqi Ji Siqi Ian Goldin is professor of globalisation and development at the University of Oxford. He previously worked at development banks, including serving as vice-president of the World Bank. His publications include The Shortest History of Migration, which was published last year. SCMP Plus readers get early access to articles in the Open Questions series. This article will be available to regular SCMP subscribers next week. Where do you think globalisation is heading? Is globalisation... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3324283/oxfords-goldin-globalisations-asian-digital-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3324283/oxfords-goldin-globalisations-asian-digital-future?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 04 Sep 2025 06:00:15 +0000 Dewey Sim Dewey Sim Da Wei is director of Tsinghua University’s Centre for International Security and Strategy in Beijing. His research focuses on China-US relations and US security and foreign policy. In this interview, he discusses the prospects for a trade deal between Beijing and Washington and examines China’s role on the global stage in light of America’s current foreign policy. SCMP Plus readers get early access to articles in the Open Questions series. This article will be available to regular SCMP... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3322811/da-wei-trump-xi-summit-what-china-wants-it?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3322811/da-wei-trump-xi-summit-what-china-wants-it?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Aug 2025 09:20:07 +0000 Josephine Ma Josephine Ma Jeffrey Sachs is an economics professor and director of the Centre for Sustainable Development at Columbia University. He is president of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. He was a special adviser to the UN Secretary General and has advised multiple governments on economic transition, debt crisis solutions and poverty alleviation policies. The Post’s previous interview with Sachs, published in July last year, can be found here. SCMP Plus readers get early access to articles in... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3320220/jeffrey-sachs-dictatorial-trump-his-gift-china-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3320220/jeffrey-sachs-dictatorial-trump-his-gift-china-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Jul 2025 04:01:12 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Since US President Donald Trump launched his global trade war in April, the United States and China have held three rounds of high-level negotiations on the neutral ground of Geneva, London and now Stockholm. The ultimate result of what both sides said were constructive talks is agreement to extend the 90-day pause in the sky-high tit-for-tat tariffs, originally due to end by August 12, without setting a deadline. The agreement between negotiators led by Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng and US... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3320143/despite-pause-us-china-tariff-war-expect-more-global-fragmentation?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3320143/despite-pause-us-china-tariff-war-expect-more-global-fragmentation?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Jul 2025 23:15:13 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang Half a year into Donald Trump’s second US presidency, a stark reality confronts Washington: the grand vision of an unprecedented focus on countering China, heralded by his strategists and supporters, has faltered. The fundamental premise that America could dramatically disengage from Europe and the Middle East, freeing up resources for a singular containment strategy against Beijing, has collided against a resistant world. Instead of pivoting to pursue China, Trump finds himself owning the very... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3319885/how-trumps-vision-single-minded-china-containment-has-failed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3319885/how-trumps-vision-single-minded-china-containment-has-failed?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Jul 2025 21:30:08 +0000 Robin Hu Robin Hu Six months into Donald Trump’s second term as president of the United States, the global order has entered a period of renewed volatility. This is not a return to the past, but the acceleration of a multipolar world marked by recalibrated alliances, fractured supply chains and shifting development models. For China, the question is not simply how it will respond to a more transactional, less predictable US, but also how it will recalibrate its external partnerships, internal growth model and... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3318898/how-china-turning-risks-trump-20-world-opportunities?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3318898/how-china-turning-risks-trump-20-world-opportunities?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 21 Jul 2025 21:30:07 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial China’s economic growth in the second quarter proved robust while exports in June were better than expected. Gross domestic product grew by 5.2 per cent between April and June despite a trade war with the United States. That has helped fuel cautious optimism the economy can achieve the full-year growth target of 5 per cent. Mainland exporters moved quickly to ship goods ahead of the end of a 90-day tariff truce in August, helping the monthly trade figure to a 5.8 per cent jump year on year. In... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3318265/chinas-economy-shows-resilience-amid-trade-war-headwinds-lie-ahead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3318265/chinas-economy-shows-resilience-amid-trade-war-headwinds-lie-ahead?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jul 2025 23:15:09 +0000 Stephen Olson Stephen Olson The conclusion of US President Donald Trump’s 90-day window for reciprocal tariff negotiations has arrived with more of a whimper than a bang. Letters have been delivered to 14 trade partners, basically reconfirming the April tariff levels or making slight adjustments, and then extending the negotiating deadline to August 1. To date, the total number of trade deals concluded stands at two – with Vietnam and Britain – not including the “framework” agreement with China. As the negotiations... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3317432/trump-flip-flops-tariffs-whats-point-negotiating-all?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3317432/trump-flip-flops-tariffs-whats-point-negotiating-all?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Jul 2025 12:30:08 +0000 Desmond Lachman Desmond Lachman When he was France’s finance minister in the 1960s, former French president Valéry Giscard d’Estaing famously complained about the “exorbitant privilege” that the dollar’s position as the world’s leading reserve currency conferred on the United States. This meant, essentially, that the US could borrow at low interest rates, run persistently large trade deficits and print money to finance its budget deficits. He never could have imagined the US would end up letting these advantages slip through... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3317284/trump-single-handedly-slaughtering-americas-exorbitant-privilege?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3317284/trump-single-handedly-slaughtering-americas-exorbitant-privilege?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Jul 2025 06:30:11 +0000 Chris Pereira Chris Pereira In an amazingly short time, China has developed globally leading technology and manufacturing in multiple sectors, including energy storage, electric vehicles (EVs), renewable energy, telecommunications equipment, biotech and more. Many markets want these goods, and China now makes them better and more cheaply than anyone else. But the unprecedented pace and scale of China’s development in these sectors have also caught many countries off guard, posing a threat to their domestic industries,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3314054/us-and-eu-should-welcome-chinese-manufacturing-not-try-shut-it-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3314054/us-and-eu-should-welcome-chinese-manufacturing-not-try-shut-it-out?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Jun 2025 08:30:07 +0000 Terry Su Terry Su Amid a US-China trade truce, negotiators in London reached a “framework” agreement to activate the Geneva deal, raising hopes for an immediate alleviation of the trade conflict, including potentially a US commitment to revoke some of its tech embargoes in return for China’s relaxation of rare earth export restrictions. The full details of the London agreement are expected to be available after both US President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping have approved it. The two-day London... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3313896/trump-cannot-hope-solve-china-problem-he-has-misdiagnosed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3313896/trump-cannot-hope-solve-china-problem-he-has-misdiagnosed?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 12 Jun 2025 21:30:07 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell Perhaps this is a good moment for an audit of US President Donald Trump and his “Make America Great Again” (Maga) acolytes’ efforts to reshape the world as we have known it for over seven decades. That means reviewing the 130-or-so days since his inauguration, during which he has seeded the storm, and looking towards the 500-or-so days up to next year’s US midterm elections, during which he is set to reap the whirlwind. One clear certainty is that we face a period of unrelenting uncertainty,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3313178/costs-trumps-chaos-become-clear-expect-him-shift-blame?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3313178/costs-trumps-chaos-become-clear-expect-him-shift-blame?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Jun 2025 08:30:08 +0000 Wenran Jiang Wenran Jiang In a stark turn of events, US President Donald Trump has accused China of “totally violating” the Geneva trade agreement. The May 12 deal, which slashed US tariffs on Chinese imports from 145 per cent to 30 per cent and Chinese tariffs on US goods from 125 per cent to 10 per cent, was touted by Trump as a triumph of American diplomacy. Within weeks, however, Trump reversed course, his administration accusing China of failing to resume rare earth exports as promised. Beijing vehemently denies any... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3312776/us-china-rivalry-morphing-multifront-war-no-easy-way-out?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3312776/us-china-rivalry-morphing-multifront-war-no-easy-way-out?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Jun 2025 01:30:08 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The United States’ global tariff war has prompted China to strengthen economic ties with other leading trading partners. Examples are the upgrading of the 15-year-old free-trade agreement (FTA) with the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and this week’s inaugural summit in Malaysia between China, Asean and the Gulf Cooperation Council. China and Asean remained each other’s top trading partner for the fifth consecutive year in 2024. After negotiations over two years, they... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3312549/solidarity-best-face-us-tariff-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3312549/solidarity-best-face-us-tariff-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 May 2025 18:25:27 +0000 Winston Mok Winston Mok The rapidly arrived at pause in the US trade war with China debunked the myth that international trade benefits mainly exporters. Any voluntary trade has to be advantageous for both buyer and seller. While it is doubtful US President Donald Trump can clinch his long-coveted Nobel Peace Prize, if he allows a full-scale trade war with China to drag on until the end of the year, he should have a fair shot at the Nobel Prize in economics for launching a bold experiment in global commerce and proving... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3311432/what-would-us-trade-war-win-really-look-americans?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3311432/what-would-us-trade-war-win-really-look-americans?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 27 May 2025 10:30:08 +0000 Ralph Jennings Ralph Jennings Wendy Cutler comes from a three-decade career in shaping US trade policy. She worked in the Office of the US Trade Representative from 1988 to 2015 before moving into the think tank space. Today, she is vice-president of the Asia Society Policy Institute. Cutler uses this accumulated experience to offer a view on the fractious US-China trade relationship at a time when trade ties remain tense despite landmark talks between the two powers, followed by a sharp reduction in tariffs, earlier this... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3311591/truth-truce-wendy-cutler-mulls-if-us-china-trade-can-find-lasting-peace?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3311591/truth-truce-wendy-cutler-mulls-if-us-china-trade-can-find-lasting-peace?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 May 2025 22:00:22 +0000 Ralph Jennings Ralph Jennings This latest interview in the Open Questions series features Wendy Cutler, a trade expert and the vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute. Cutler previously spent nearly three decades as a diplomat and negotiator in the Office of the US Trade Representative, where she worked in areas including US-China trade negotiations and the Trans-Pacific Partnership. In this interview, Cutler talks about the US-China trade war pause, the future of global trade and China’s push for economic... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3311324/china-us-tariff-truce-likely-carry-if-talks-make-progress-cutler-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3311324/china-us-tariff-truce-likely-carry-if-talks-make-progress-cutler-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 22 May 2025 06:00:22 +0000 Terry Su Terry Su After intense two-day negotiations with China in Geneva recently, the United States agreed to postpone its “reciprocal tariff” on China for 90 days, with both sides cutting additional tariffs mostly to 10 per cent. In yet another example of US President Donald Trump taking people by surprise, he declared the climbdown a “historic trade win”. Trump and his supporters claimed a victory by pointing to the pre-April-2 fentanyl-based tariff of 20 per cent on China that remains, by Beijing agreeing to... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310944/trump-forced-bargain-china-us-mourns-loss-supremacy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310944/trump-forced-bargain-china-us-mourns-loss-supremacy?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 May 2025 12:30:09 +0000 Chow Chung-yan Chow Chung-yan The global economy breathed a collective sigh of relief as China and the US stepped back from the brink of a damaging trade decoupling. The better-than-expected results from their Geneva negotiations sent ripples of confidence through financial markets. Yet beneath the surface optimism lingers the sobering reality that this is merely a 90-day reprieve rather than a lasting resolution. Given the intricate and often contentious nature of their economic interdependence, the prospect of a sweeping... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3311006/us-china-tariff-truce-offers-hope-resolution-fentanyl-and-other-issues?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3311006/us-china-tariff-truce-offers-hope-resolution-fentanyl-and-other-issues?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 May 2025 00:00:11 +0000 Josephine Ma Josephine Ma Most analysts would agree that the trade truce between Beijing and Washington is a temporary de-escalation of tension as fundamental factors, such as their economic and tech rivalries, remain much the same. However, the 90-day tariff pause is an important period for the two countries to prepare for strategic moves in the next stage, including speeding up the diversification of supply chains and markets to reduce the shock of potential tariff hikes once the truce ends. The easing of tension is... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3311093/us-should-change-narrative-about-opioid-crisis-if-it-wants-chinas-full-support?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3311093/us-should-change-narrative-about-opioid-crisis-if-it-wants-chinas-full-support?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 May 2025 12:00:11 +0000 Zhou Xin Zhou Xin China’s growth prospects face three major long-term threats – debt, decoupling and demographic challenges – and many observers are curious about how Beijing will respond to these issues. After years of trial and adjustment, policymakers have settled on three key strategic directions – a decision that has been reinforced by US President Donald Trump’s tariff war and technology restrictions against China. First, China will not repeat its old playbook of unleashing massive stimulus and shoring up... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3310906/china-counts-three-strategic-directions-survive-trumps-tariff-and-tech-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3310906/china-counts-three-strategic-directions-survive-trumps-tariff-and-tech-war?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 19 May 2025 23:00:07 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell In the mad scramble to understand the narrative around the latest US-China trade “deal”, almost no one has raised the question of why discussions were held in Geneva. The answer is simple. It goes a long way towards helping one understand the outcome. It explains why, despite narratives to the contrary, there was no winner, with the journey to any resolution likely to be long and fraught. In having the meetings in Geneva at the gated residence of Switzerland’s UN ambassador, the Chinese message... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310529/chinas-message-trade-deals-clear-multilateral-only-way?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310529/chinas-message-trade-deals-clear-multilateral-only-way?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 May 2025 08:30:07 +0000 Bernard Chan Bernard Chan The US-China tariff war has sharply focused attention on global trade, supply chains and economic interdependence, forcing people worldwide to confront the challenges of today’s interconnected economy. While the conflict has highlighted the fragility of supply chains, recent events have also ushered in positive developments, fostering a sense of hope and optimism. At the beginning of the week, negotiations between the world’s two largest economies in Geneva resulted in a 90-day pause on tariff... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310356/thanks-trump-we-now-have-profound-appreciation-supply-chains?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310356/thanks-trump-we-now-have-profound-appreciation-supply-chains?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 May 2025 01:30:07 +0000 Yonden Lhatoo Yonden Lhatoo The thing about every ridiculous or outrageous public statement coming from US President Donald Trump and his cronies is how the world responds with a token bit of collective pearl-clutching and then moves on like nothing has happened until the next shocker. That’s why it’s important to keep reminding everyone what kind of people are now, in their own words, “running the world” from the White House. A case in point is the vile racism that US Vice-President J.D. Vance spewed recently while going... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3310532/racists-and-losers-jd-vance-and-americas-stupid-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3310532/racists-and-losers-jd-vance-and-americas-stupid-trade-war?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 15 May 2025 15:12:27 +0000 Thomas O. Falk Thomas O. Falk The UK-US trade deal, trumpeted by President Donald Trump as a grand achievement, is no triumph of statecraft. It is a hollow spectacle, political theatre masquerading as economic progress. For Britain, it lays bare the perils of negotiating from weakness. For other major economies – the European Union, Japan or China – it stands as a cautionary tale. They must heed Britain’s experience: strength, not desperation, must define their approach; substance, not optics, must be their demand. Strip... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310170/britain-blinked-against-bullying-trumpian-america-others-must-not?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3310170/britain-blinked-against-bullying-trumpian-america-others-must-not?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 May 2025 08:30:09 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The world can breathe a sigh of relief on two counts after a weekend of talks between the top economic officials of China and the United States on their trade war. One is an agreement to pause steep trade tariffs between the two nations for 90 days; the other is agreement to establish a “trade consultation mechanism” to head off potential crises, like the escalation of the trade war triggered by President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz. The new mechanism has a window of 90 days to defuse the threat... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3310046/ceasefire-trade-war-only-start-push-long-lasting-peace?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3310046/ceasefire-trade-war-only-start-push-long-lasting-peace?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 May 2025 22:15:06 +0000