Commentary
Before wars become hot and kinetic, with missiles flying, they usually creep up into the sphere of trade and economics. Situational awareness of this dynamic is critical, so the missiles don’t surprise us if they do fly.
The norm in trade relations is mutual benefit through comparative advantage. This is the “friendly competition” that both the Trump and Biden administrations tried to achieve with China.
Donald Trump’s first move with Beijing was to call Xi Jinping a great guy and visit with a planeload of CEOs. Joe Biden tried (and failed) to roll back Trump’s tariffs in exchange for peace with China. He continues to emphasize engagement and cooperation on issues such as climate change and public health….