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US-China trade war

US-China trade war
Breaking news and analysis on the US-China trade war, its history and timeline, and the impact on the global economy.
US Ambassador Kevin Cabrera visited the US Coast Guard cutter Alert during its port call in Panama City, highlighting the enduring maritime partnership between the United States and Panama. Photo: Handout
US-China relations

US highlights Panama security ties as China-linked canal ports deal stalls

US envoy’s coastguard visit near Panama comes as Beijing presses for Cosco control and Washington pushes back.

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US-China relations

As Trump upends US foreign policy, analysts see fresh openings for China

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China exports

China confirms issuing of first general licences for rare earth exports

China trade

China jails antimony smugglers in tough stance on critical minerals

Dozens convicted of illegally shipping 166 tonnes of the strategic material, marking a major enforcement of Beijing’s export controls.

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The Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court in Guangdong province has found several people guilty of illegally shipping antimony without obtaining export licences. Photo: SCMPOST
China trade

China’s Hainan launches separate customs regime allowing tariff-free imports

Most goods can enter Hainan with zero import duties under the new system, as China looks to turn the island into a strategic buffer zone.

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China trade

As trade deficit mounts, is EU selling what China wants to buy?

Traditional European exports like cars are losing their appeal, while restrictions crimp sales of sought-after lithography machines.

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US-China decoupling

Open Questions | Yeo on how Trump wants to avoid Taiwan upending China relations

Former Singapore foreign minister George Yeo says that Donald Trump is prioritising stable relations with China, and that the US is facing decline amid a shift to a multipolar world.

illustration by Lau Ka-kuen
United States

Trump gives himself high marks in 2025 report card, with his eyes on 2026 fight

In a White House speech, the president claimed economic and foreign policy wins while urging voters to back his agenda in the midterms.

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US-China tech war

Editorial | Export curbs or not, Trump’s America can’t slow China’s tech surge

US debate over how to contain China’s tech development is irrelevant as Chinese domestic industry development has already taken full flight.

US-China relations

‘A risk’: wealthy Chinese appear to shun Trump’s ‘gold card’ immigration scheme

Initial excitement fizzles amid limited benefits and security concerns, immigration agents say.

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US President Donald Trump holds up the original US$5 million gold card as he speaks to reporters while on board Air Force One, on April 3. Photo: AP
China trade

China bets big on copper processing, but ‘weaponisation’ risks are low: analysts

Beijing views copper as critical for EVs and AI, but a reliance on imported ore limits China’s ability to use the strategic metal as leverage.

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A coil of copper rod sits on the production line for copper flat wire at a factory in China’s Jiangxi province in August. Photo: Reuters
Rare earths

China eases grip on rare earths

China has suspended export controls on critical minerals introduced in October and eased the licensing process for others following the Trump-Xi summit in South Korea.

China exports

Surviving the shocks: what China and the US learned from 2025’s trade war

Businesses and officials faced a year of disruption – and in some cases, resilience – as tariffs and export controls roiled global markets.

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China-Latin America relations

Chile’s sharp shift to the right puts it at the centre of China-US rivalry

Election of Jose Antonio Kast in Latin American country adds to Donald Trump’s vocal allies but analysts expect China ties to stay stable.

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Supporters of Chile’s winning presidential candidate Jose Antonio Kast react as the first election results are announced on Sunday. Photo: AFP
China-Latin America relations

Mexico stands by its decision for 50 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods

Government defends tariff package as vital to supporting domestic workers and producers, and not aimed at curbing imports from China.

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Mexican Economy Secretary Marcelo Ebrard on Monday defended his country’s decision to impose new tariffs on imports from China. Photo: AP
Science

Why China’s growing demand for rare-earth steel is bad news for America’s F-35

Advanced product is used in huge infrastructure projects but that has further reduced supply for overseas buyers like the US defence sector.

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United States

‘Efforts to choke China cannot succeed’: Xi Jinping to top leadership

China’s rise is unstoppable, president tells central economic work conference, hails ‘moral backbone’ in rare allusion to US trade war.

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China consumption

Forging ahead: China’s copper heartland vows to build US$28 billion empire

Shandong province plans to create a world-class smelting hub by 2027 to secure supply chains for the strategic metal as prices sizzle.

Employees wind copper rods in July at a workshop that recycles copper in China’s Anhui province. Photo: AFP
Science

US green tech retreat echoes mistake of China’s Qing dynasty before collapse

While Washington pulls back on climate, Beijing is making it possible for developing nations to leapfrog into a cleaner energy era.

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Rare earths

China-free supply chain? US firm has a rare earth strategy – but can it work?

Backed by Washington, REalloys seeks to break dependence on China but says achieving fully self-sufficient supply chain will take time.

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United States

Outside In | It’s an expensive Christmas for Americans thanks to Trump’s tariffs

It’s been years since the US president extolled the virtues of trade wars: how much longer before he recognises tariffs harm the US economy?

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People walk by shop windows decorated for Christmas in New York on December 5. Photo: dpa
China trade

China’s food-security push to slash soy imports by two-thirds: Goldman Sachs

Beijing is lowering feed content and making related advancements that analysts say could reduce China’s foreign-soybean dependence dramatically within a decade.

Soybeans are loaded into a truck in August so they can be hauled to an elevator in the US state of Illinois. Photo: TNS
China-India relations

Trump, Modi have ‘warm’ phone call – but 2025 unlikely to end with a trade deal

Even after calls for India to contribute more in the Indo-Pacific to counter China and deepen defence ties, Trump refuses to budge on trade concessions.

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US-China relations

Senior Democrat urges Rubio to fill Arctic post and halt rise of China, Russia

In a letter, Raja Krishnamoorthi asks US Secretary of State to restore key US role in ‘one of the world’s most strategically vital regions’.

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China-Latin America relations

Mexico slaps tariffs of up to 50% on Chinese goods as US trade pact review looms

Beijing criticises the duties as damaging to its interests, as Mexico defends them as vital to support domestic producers.

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Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum says her government consulted domestic and foreign business leaders before finalising the tariff measure. Photo: EPA
China-Japan relations

Donald Trump left facing ‘dilemma’ as China-Japan spat worsens: analyst

White House navigates backing long-time ally Japan while preserving trade truce with China amid fraying ties between the Asian neighbours.

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Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi gestures as US President Donald Trump delivers a speech during their visit to the aircraft carrier USS George Washington in Yokosuka, Japan, on October 28. Photo: AP
US-China decoupling

‘Maximum pressure’: why China is taking Mexico’s tariff move ‘very seriously’

Beijing sees Mexico’s move as driven by a wider US pressure campaign – and could take retaliatory measures, analysts say.

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US-China tech war

China may buy Nvidia’s H200 – but homegrown chip strategy here to stay: analysts

Despite Trump easing curbs, domestic chipmakers expected to remain central to Beijing’s tech ambitions.

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