Trump heads to China weakened as Xi gains leverage ahead of summit
President Trump's high-stakes Beijing visit this week comes as he is weakened by the Iran war, court setbacks on tariffs and softer polls — handing Xi Jinping a rare-earth and tariff leverage that may set the agenda.
Trump's 14-16 May Beijing visit comes in the fourth month of the Iran war and as his tariff authorities face appellate review. Wang Yiwei, professor at Renmin University, told the SCMP: 'Beijing is at the table more relaxed; don't expect quick tariff concessions.'
China's April exports rose 14% year-on-year to $295 billion, with a record $92 billion trade surplus. The numbers strengthen Beijing's hand. Meanwhile, a US Supreme Court ruling on Trump's emergency tariff powers is expected in June.
The Chinese yuan ended the week at 7.12 against the dollar. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index closed Friday up 0.9%. Goldman Sachs economist Hui Shan said the bank now puts the probability of a substantive post-summit tariff cut at just 30%.
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