China moves to Trump-proof its economy
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. SINGAPORE : China’s leaders promised more government support for their struggling economy next year as they brace for the return of President-elect Donald Trump and another big showdown over trade. An annual gathering of top officials on the economy concluded with pledges to cut interest rates and boost government borrowing to pep up economic growth, according to a report by China’s state broadcaster Thursday.
Officials also vowed to stabilize stock and real-estate markets and see off risks from “external shocks," the report said, a veiled reference to the likelihood of renewed confrontation with Washington over trade, technology and other hot-button issues under a second Trump presidency. China’s economy is in trouble even without the prospect of worsening trade friction with the U.S. Local governments are swimming in debt and a yearslong property crisis is rumbling on.
Subdued consumer spending and ballooning industrial production mean the economy is struggling to banish the specter of deflation. A renewed clash with Trump over trade threatens to deprive China of the export engine that has been propping up growth for the past year, heaping pressure on Beijing to reinvigorate the domestic economy—or watch growth slow below the 5% or so annual rate it is expected to notch this year. The U.S.
president-elect last month threatened China with tariffs of 10% on all imports on top of existing levies, citing what he says is Beijing’s failure to police chemicals that go into making fentanyl. During his presidential run, he talked about raising tariffs on Chinese imports as high as 60%, which economists said would significantly pinch growth in China were he to follow through. China has
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