Opinion

A stronger, more confident China has little to fear from Trump 2.0

Donald Trump’s intentions towards China are clear, Beijing has seen him off before and this time, the US has less economic leverage, ironically, thanks to its decoupling efforts

Importantly, Trump’s trade tariff plans, if seen through, would only alienate the world, including US allies

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Zhou Xiaoming is a senior fellow at the Centre for China and Globalisation in Beijing and a former deputy representative of China’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations Office in Geneva.

Published: 5:30am, 29 Feb 2024Updated: 6:09am, 29 Feb 2024

The possible return of Donald Trump to the Oval Office has caused considerable disconcert, even fear, in Western capitals from Brussels to Ottawa and also in Tokyo. Beijing, however, appears nonplussed. It has good reason to be.

To start with, the US presidential election will not substantially change America’s economic and trade policy towards China.

Former president Trump seems tougher on China than incumbent Joe Biden. Trump has suggested that the US should deprive China of its “most favoured nation” status, which World Trade Organization members accord each other. He has threatened a tariff of upwards of 60 per cent on all Chinese imports, from around 20 per cent now, and has vowed to decouple from China economically.

In contrast, the Biden administration seeks the best of both worlds: maximising America’s commercial interest from its economic engagement with China while thwarting its development.