Archives USA and China - New Eastern Outlook

President Trump’s abrupt 90-day pause on newly announced tariffs—excluding China—temporarily calmed global markets, triggered a 9% surge in the S&P 500, and exposed the mounting internal and external pressures undermining his hardline trade agenda.

When the US Secretary of Defence vowed to counter China during his maiden visit to Asia, he likely did not realise how his administration’s imposition of tariffs would deepen China’s ties with Southeast Asian nations, leaving Washington’s broader geopolitical interests in unstable territories.

China has significantly strengthened its economic and strategic arsenal to counter a renewed trade war under Donald Trump.