“We’re going to have meetings and calls with President Xi,” Trump said, adding that he’d been invited to China — without confirming whether he planned to make such a trip. The US leader signed an order for his administration to address unfair trade practices globally and investigate China’s compliance with a deal struck during his first term.
For President Xi Jinping, the stage was set for an explosive start to Donald Trump’s presidency, after he campaigned on a promise to punish China with tariffs. Instead, the American leader’s first day back in office bought Beijing some unexpected breathing room.
On the campaign trail, Trump floated tariffs on China around the 60% mark and pledged to impose a 10% levy for Beijing’s alleged failure to stop drugs “pouring into” the US. But at an impromptu press briefing in the Oval Office on Monday in Washington, the Republican leader avoided committing to a plan for Chinese tariffs, as he signed a flurry of executive orders on camera.
