Donald Trump’s trade pounce is a gift to China

Donald Trump’s trade pounce is a gift to China. The US president says it’s his and counterpart Xi Jinping’s job to strike a tariff deal.
Asserting the importance of his personal involvement reflects his desire for a pact and may mean Beijing won’t have to make big concessions. It puts hardline White House negotiators in a tough spot.
Trump’s desire to put his personal seal on any China trade pact differs from past deals.
For example, he allowed US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to finalise the revised North American Free Trade Agreement, as well as to lead talks with Beijing. But with the People’s Republic, the president said on Thursday that he wants to be the one to resolve the most difficult issues with Xi.
Yet Trump often doesn’t get much in return when he’s personally involved. He praised North Korea last June after an unprecedented meeting with leader Kim Jong Un, who largely echoed promises made to past administrations. Trump also saved Chinese state telecommunications firm after a phone call between him and Xi.
US suppliers were allowed to continue doing business with ZTE, which was accused of breaching terms of an Iranian sanctions violations deal, by making board changes and other moves.
Some of Trump’s demands are feasible for China, like buying more agricultural products. In a White House meeting on Thursday, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He told Trump that his country would buy 5 million tonnes of American soybeans, which the president repeatedly highlighted during his public remarks at the gathering.
Structural issues, like cutting state subsidies, are much more challenging. And these are the topics that Lighthizer wants to tackle the most.
They include stopping forced technology transfers and intellectual property theft. In a letter to Trump, Xi said he hoped they could strike a deal before tariffs are set to rise on $200 billion in Chinese products on March 1.
China has so far signalled a lack of willingness to make big changes in the toughest areas of disagreement. With Trump making the final call, there’s no reason for Beijing to offer what may have amounted to tougher concessions were Lighthizer still in charge.
Perhaps the most he can hope for is incorporating enforcement mechanisms that keeps China on its toes — but even that may be a stretch. — Reuters