How China's resilience blueprint will outlast Trum...

How China's resilience blueprint will outlast Trump's tariff bluster

Monica Cheru-Managing Editor

As US President Donald Trump continues to wreak havoc on the world economic arena, this past week has revealed the likely outcome of what China has termed a war with no winner.

While Trump was confusing the world and even Americans with his bluster and claims that China had asked for talks, Beijing demonstrated that while it is ready for talks, China will not play the part of the supplicant; it is up to Trump, who started the war, to end it.

At a key Politburo meeting this past week, President Xi Jinping and the Communist Party leadership took a pragmatic stance on the situation that China finds itself in.

They admitted that the tariffs are impacting the Chinese economy and that it will take a special effort to see economic growth in 2025, then came up with strategies to ensure economic and social stability.

This contrasts sharply with the approach in Washington, where Trump does not seem to care about the citizens, the people he is mandated to lead in his quest to destroy China.

When the Federal Reserve warned of inflation and slow job growth, Trump’s answer was to hint that he would fire the chairman, a threat he soon withdrew when the markets immediately plummeted.

Americans must grapple with the possibility of inflation accompanied by job losses and the closure of many small businesses.

Even to strong supporters like Elon Musk, Trump’s tariff blitz is no longer looking like a grand economic strategy that will Make America Great Again, but rather a disaster.

But Trump does not seem to want to admit and come up with a way of rebuilding the US manufacturing capacity that does not hurt the people.

By contrast, China’s Politburo came up with a roadmap that is people-centered, with a focus on cushioning the low- and middle-level income earners.

Some of the proposed action points include upping domestic spending, interest rate cuts, and stimulus packages for emerging sectors like AI and high-tech manufacturing policy.

At the same time, the Chinese government is giving priority to welfare through policies that will stabilize food prices, expand social welfare, and support local governments to meet basic service obligations, including elderly care, affordable housing, and urban renewal.

While Trump is trying to force-feed Americans nebulous nationalistic packaged promises of his MAGA tariffs, Beijing is shielding its most vulnerable first.

While Trump is bragging about bringing China down to its knees, China continues to say there are no winners in a trade war.

But by preparing for the worst-case scenario and accepting any potential pain, then planning to rise above it, Beijing is placing itself into an impregnable position to successfully navigate the stormy global economic future.

Where Trump relies on talk with short-term shock, making it appear as though he has the upper hand, China has shown that it is all about strategizing and implementing and is likely to win the long game.

As Trump threatens and extorts allies to bow down to protectionism, Xi has been charming partners and continuing to preach the gospel of shared prosperity and multipolarity.

Where China has strong cash reserves to help it fight to the bitter end, the US has a huge debt hanging around its neck and the baggage of its proxy war in Ukraine, as well as its aggression and support for aggressors in the Middle East, to deal with, on top of disastrous policies.

If Trump continues on a path of denial and refuses to admit that his cards were never as great as he imagined, there is no doubt that this is one game that China will eventually win.