"The Chinese economy is in a precarious position, and the country’s overcapacity problem is forcing it to increase exports and creating pushback across the world. China’s economic future is uncertain, and the downturn may not be reversed even with active government intervention, regardless of what the United States does.

Yet Chinese leaders remain confident that, even if the country’s economy suffers, four years of Trump is unlikely to send it into a full-blown crisis. And they anticipate that if Trump follows through on his declared policies, such as those on trade and territorial expansion, he could do severe damage to the United States’ credibility and global leadership. Beijing thus sees Trump’s second term as a potential opportunity for China to expand its influence farther and faster. In this view, competition with the United States is not in itself the driving force behind China’s grand strategy. It is instead one component of a larger process: China’s rise and displacement of the United States as the world’s leading superpower, what Xi often describes as “changes unseen in a century.” Beijing assumes that Washington’s own policies will dismantle the foundations of U.S. global hegemony, even if it creates a lot of turbulence for other countries in the process. China’s top priority, then, is simply to weather the storm."

https://www.foreignaffairs.com/china/chinas-trump-strategy

#China #USA #Trump #Imperialism