Public opinion toward the US-China trade war is overwhelmingly negative, marked by concerns over rising costs, job losses, and broader economic instability. Commenters express significant frustration with US leadership and tariff policies, advocating for greater autonomy among targeted nations and emphasizing the importance of solidarity among BRICS countries. Many voice admiration for China's advancements and criticize both the US's approach and India's bureaucratic inaction, suggesting a shift away from reliance on the US economy.

United States

China

India

BRICS Nations

Hi all,

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&gt;Despite US President Donald Trump’s [efforts](https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/11/trump-announced-another-deal-with-china-will-it-hold-00400288) to tout the stopgap measures as a “deal” that benefits America, China reads the scoreboard differently – and believes it is winning. From its vantage point, it has weathered the storm and emerged more confident, more self-reliant, and more convinced that its long game is paying off.

Trump is an fucking idiot and only appoints people loyal to him, making them de facto fucking idiots.  Can't win a professional trade negotiation with D league players.

Just_Candle_315

I mean they aren't wrong. Between his first and second term China has:  


* Diversified further their export trade and continued to strengthen it (see everything they export, and especially EVs)
* Increased soft power via trade with more countries (See Africa)
* Divisified and strengthened their import trade (see soybeans) 
* Increased the case for non-USD backed trade currency
* US consumers are paying the brunt of the tariff taxes, which are also right back where they were
* Seen no real change in the trade deficit (in their favor) with the US
* Just got the word today that NVIDA chips are sellable again to them
* Had more trade sanctions lifted
* Heck even the TIktok sale has been delayed til another taco someday
* No real manufacturing has made it back to the US, and in fact we've increased US tariffs tax on our consumers from our best trade partners more (Mexico, Canada and EU). Fucking tomatoes just went up because some idiot believes in the infinity tomato cash gun. 

I'm sure there's more "winning" as well.

joepez

“Since the Sino-American trade conflict began in 2018, China has developed a playbook with defensive and offensive strategies. The Chinese government has maintained an edge during US President Donald Trump’s second administration by doubling down on these strategies and rallying the public against perceived foreign humiliation.”

Stuart_Whatley

If trump wanted to win a trade war against China, maybe he should've tried to get support from USA's allies and done it together instead of fucking them over

arrrse

I feel that the most surprising thing about the US economy is that negative numbers are not really appearing so far.

I think that the Soyabean market, for example, must see the US losing market share to Brazil.  In Wine, the US has seen exports plummet due to Canada switching to other countries.  Soyabeans, at least, are one of the US top exports so this must hurt, right?

I wonder, is it just my bias that’s causing me to miss the good things about the US economic strategy?  However, I think even independent views regard the cuts in green investments as a big mistake.

Interestingly, the Economist has an article saying that Republicans have copied Hungary in forming their political strategy and Project 2025.  Apparently senior US politicians have been on courses in Hungary, enticed by Orban’s long spell in power.  The tie between politics and economics is strong, so it’s worth noting that Hungary has fallen to among the poorest nations in the EU now.    Is a similar fall likely for the US, over the long term?

Tammer_Stern

China won when US electorate chose 19th century jingoism and xenophobia, and decidedly gave it absolute power in November…

You may gaslight all u want with the threats of tariffs, but economic reality will always prevail at the end…just like that Invisible Hand. 

This century will be Chinese…slowly but surely.

Efficient_Resist_287

China is viewed by the US and many economists as they were 20 years ago. Their economy has shifted considerably to be much more innovative, diversified, and decentralized. Whenever I bring this up I get accused of listening to Chinese propaganda, but that is part of the problem. We don't want to change our opinion of who China is, and therefore we don't see what they are actually doing and learn and adapt. 

The US has so many strong fundamentals and purchasing power that we're not going to go away any time soon, and China is guilty of so much horrendous bullshit that I don't think players like the EU will flock to them, but from an innovation (both technical and economic policy) standpoint they are going to lap the US in the next 10-20 years if we dont start paying attention. In the meantime we seem to be trying to turn into what China used to be: an oligarchy with an economy based on producing cheap manufacturing and agricultural goods

StraightArrival5096

Not only that, China is winning a culture war too. 

This entire ordeal is making China look mature while the US shits the bed. 

Whole world has a better impression of China now than they did 5 months ago. 

hillbillyspellingbee

They've been winning since Nixon gave them legitimacy, Reagan-Bush used Federal debt to pay for offshoring and Bush-Cheney bombed the world.  I was at the ASEAN conference where Bush embarrassed the USA badly, Africa walking away with a slew of deals avoiding "the West".   The coverage in the Press was the opposite, too caught up in War Patriotism to even see reality. 

Apprehensive-Fun4181

Trump's play book is to create a problem that doesn't exist then to come up with a solution to fix the problem he created in the first place to make his Donor's rich.

barseico


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The *Art of the Deal* my friends.

Step 1: Cause chaos  
Step 2: Berate  
Step 3: Backtrack  
Step 4: Double down  
Step 5: Taco

Colonel-Mooseknuckle

noforgayjesus

The war is over, and the US is the declared loser because we’re still getting hit with 55% tariffs on much/most of the consumer goods we buy. 

Sharp_Blueberry_6547

Our supply chain purchasing system is still showing full tariffs as of 10:35AM Eastern.

MagicBingo

So, he just made things 30% more expensive for American consumers, what is the end goal?

Tobimacoss

Is he gonna pull a George Bush and hang the giant MISSION ACCOMPLISHED banner?

PopPalsUnited

dogisgodspeltright

He also claims that there were airports during the revolutionary War. Doesn't make it true.

Otherwise_Variety719

President Donald Trump says he has reached a deal with China that will ensure the US receives rare earth materials, keeps tariffs at a total of 55 percent, and allows American universities to keep accepting Chinese students. Trump announced the news of the agreement on Truth Social, which he says is still “subject to final approval” by himself and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

As noted by NBC News, the 55 percent figure isn’t new, and includes the 30 percent tariffs Trump introduced earlier this year, along with a pre-existing 25 percent tax. China will also implement a 10 percent tariff on US goods under the agreement.

Read more: [https://www.theverge.com/news/685390/trump-us-china-trade-war-agreement](https://www.theverge.com/news/685390/trump-us-china-trade-war-agreement)

theverge

I heard he got his ass handed to him by Xi.  Maga lost.

dremonearm

McNuttyNutz

There’s still tariffs in place higher than they were when he started.

He’s just moved on to antagonizing American citizens and hoping for a civil war as his gender affirming care.

aradraugfea

Orange Treasus is so stupid.

China will buy FEWER PRODUCTS from the US, while US citizens get fleeced 10% for Tunt's pockets.

Weird-Ad7562

Rambaz_69

VerdantPathfinder

allenahansen

slo1111

smersh101

So he screams a terrible deal in all caps to ensure MAGA thinks he won.

MurkyGovernment651

Glittering-Matter960

Notgoodatfakenames2

Yeah, so...got question, there, buddy...is China aware of this deal you claimed you made?

dispelhope

Yeah well, we'll see. Pretty much a matter of "He said, Xi said" at this point. The real test is whether whatever bullshit they've agreed is any better than the status quo before Trump threw his bitchy little tariff tantrum.

OnDrugsTonight

He surrendered, but he and his cronies still made huge profits from the chaos.

Head-Simple-3329

He doesn't just claim it, he declares it!

coyylol

Fortunately for Trump, there are all those other countries just begging to make a deal with him. He's already signed dozens.

  
Let's see, there's..., and then there's..., and .... really drove a hard bargain.

  
Winning!

SwvellyBents

Rising from 10% to 55% is no fucking deal.

Interesting-Risk6446

Small businesses on both sides will be hurt. Consumers who want their items will be hurt. Any US company that requires rare earth minerals won't get them unless China decides to sell or Japan decides to part with some of their one year stockpile. If US bond rates continue to rise, everyone in the US loses.  
  
Short answer, no one wins in a trade war which is why there hasn't really been one in the past 95 years.

Paperman_82

Tariffs are a regressive tax on consumption, so their primary effect on Americans will be that consumers will see large increases in their cost of living and lower their consumption. However, we also sell things like Airplanes to China, and between that and lower consumption, America is likely to see a recession, lower tax revenues, etc.

China will see a big impact to exports, which will also impact their economy, where manufacturing is a bright spot, so it is also likely to be quite painful for them.

It’s unclear at this point who this will be more painful for. Both countries rely on each other heavily for trade, and it’s unclear how the global economy will reorient around this disruption.

In this game of chicken, with both countries feeling significant pain, the more interesting question might be how domestic politics will impact their leaders’ willingness to blink first. My money would be on the US since a free press and democratic system is going to quickly put pressure on the person who started this to do something to fix it, and Xi will feel strong pressure to not capitulate to imperialist Americans and shame the nation.

probablymagic

U.S. consumers.   We are about to see imported goods being 20-25% more expensive unless there’s a simultaneous drop in demand from an economic collapse.

[deleted]

As someone from the UK who imports goods, I would be interested to hear from any US importers who ordered goods before the whole tariff hike and now have goods in transit and will have to pay a huge unexpected fee when they arrive in the US. 


I had a similar experience during covid when the cost of shipping suddenly skyrocketed, but it was too late to cancel the order. The unexpected fees nearly bankrupted me. 


There must be lots of small US firms in this situation

ABlokeFromChester

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As a proportion of GDP exports from China to the US are not that large. It's about 3% of GDP. As a result, I don't expect the Chinese economy to suffer that much.

The suffering will be different in the two economies. High prices for some goods will be the problem in the US. Unemployment in some industries will be the problem in China.

RobThorpe

groupnight

That depends on what winning looks like, maybe who's economy is destroyed the least?  China could boost trade with Europe and South America. I don't really see a decoupling from China because our economies our so intertwined, but I think derisking from China is more realistic, especially after the COVID19 crisis.

Secure_Ad_4823

They won this years ago. Now is just a good time to close the book. The US president just threatened the entire world that he is coming after them after he deals with China. Which means it behooves them to make sure he doesn't finish with China. 

Three D chess, etc, etc. We buy our Christmas ornaments from an officially atheist country, with US Treasuries everyone knows we intend never to pay off. That story was going to end eventually, and it seems today is the day.

aquarain

It seems like they can afford to lose us as a customer in a world where ever other country has been threatened and bullied by our leadership. It's bad enough if it happened once but it going to keep happening.

Monkeefeetz

China can win this trade war if and only if it somehow brings India on its side along with rest of BRICS. So the Q is can China do it? Is China ready to negotiate on backfoot in grand scheme of things?? THEY ARE SURELY TRYING!!

day_trdr

Ideally China should just agree with the tariffs. No one will buy over over-priced American goods like Harley Davidson or Tesla any ways. America survives only on imports. Americans have no intellectual capacity to even manufacture locally. 😆😆

Whole-Fist

No can can push China back to the wall. Unless your country can forgo the rare earth and doesn't want the general affordable household goods and consumer electrical products from China..Go round your house and see how many items are made in China.

StomachNew6751

China has already won.. US is doomed. Economy is collapsing. Bond markets already can see for yourself..But Being Americans.. Many is in denial!!. We shall see who collapse first.. Doesn't need long.. A few more months will be sufficient...And Yes, China is hurt as well, but sustainable and able to find substitute for US business.. Make US suffer!!. They deserve it...

Can they?

The scoreboard is already pretty rough

Tygonol

A downside of authoritarian system is that it can keep doubling down on a failing strategy because it does not need to listen to criticism or compromise.

Skeptical0ptimist

The problem with the title is that it kind of implies there will be winner. Yes the US is likely to loose the tradewar. China is also likely to loose the tradewar. There will be precious few if any winners (under the current status quo likely a mix of South Asian and South East Asian countries which are best placed to pick up some of the low value manufacturing that China currently dominates if larger economic effects don't drown that out, and much like the US rust belt, once those industries leave China they aren't coming back, we've already seen a lot of this with apparel).  We could argue about who would loose worse, but I'm not sure even what the best measure of comparison would be. China, so far, is politically unwilling to take the measures that would be required to really challenge the US led international financial order because of the opening up and loss of control aspects that would  be required to allow for it.  If anything they have been moving the opposite direction. China hasn't really recovered internally from COVID and faces huge headwinds with it's property market.  For whatever reason property driven financial recessions are perniciously long lived and impactful (see 2008 Great Recession, late 1980's Japan etc.) and China is flirting with trouble there.

dsafklj

We dont need to win the trade war per se. We just need to change the trajectory. For example, strip their most favored status, end their developing nation label, and make it more expensive for companies to manufacturer goods destined for the US in China compared to other nations. If we do those things, China will slowly crumble.

WorksInIT

Bro Xi Jinping was traveling through Asia to bed them to not take advantage of the trade war and help them instead they devalued their currency so much so counter the tariffs. New data chows that china unemployment is skyrocketing the china.

Gloomy_Friend_1383

I think something that gets left out of this conversation too often is that the policy positions are fundamentally opposed to one another and not enough conversations on his cognitive decline compared to how Joe was covered.

Does Trump see the trade deficit truly as unfair? (It isn’t) then tariffs are here to stay. 

Does Trump want the tariffs in place to bring in revenue (tax hike)? If so then tariffs are here to stay.  

Does Trump want the tariffs in place to incentivize domestic production? If so, he CANT remove them or else companies will not change the way they do things. 

This war was destined to be lost from the start. We get to pay for it…

Famous-Ask1004

This is exactly what Putin was counting on in Ukraine.   When he didn't get his quick win, he just hunkered down and kept attacking.   He believed (I think he said it publicly at one point) that the US couldn't sustain a long war.  US voters and politicians would move on to something else. 

And, he was right.  (at least, right about enough Americans)

Ind132

The ongoing trade war between the United States and China continues to have profound impacts on both economies, fueled by tariffs from the Trump administration.

US-China Trade War and Tariffs

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