How Trump’s Year of Disruption Has Only Helped China
Wed Feb 04 2026
Donald Trump returned to office promising once again to rein in China’s economic rise. Instead, his first year back has delivered Xi Jinping something close to the opposite: a world more open to Chinese exports, more willing to hedge against Washington and increasingly uncertain about the reliability of the US or its commitments.
On this episode of Trumponomics, host Stephanie Flanders speaks with Lowy Institute Senior Fellow Richard McGregor and Bloomberg Executive Editor Dan Ten Kate about how the US president’s unpredictable and often combative diplomacy has given the Chinese president more room to maneuver—all without forcing Beijing to change its export-heavy, state-driven economic model.
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Donald Trump returned to office promising once again to rein in China’s economic rise. Instead, his first year back has delivered Xi Jinping something close to the opposite: a world more open to Chinese exports, more willing to hedge against Washington and increasingly uncertain about the reliability of the US or its commitments. On this episode of Trumponomics, host Stephanie Flanders speaks with Lowy Institute Senior Fellow Richard McGregor and Bloomberg Executive Editor Dan Ten Kate about how the US president’s unpredictable and often combative diplomacy has given the Chinese president more room to maneuver—all without forcing Beijing to change its export-heavy, state-driven economic model. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.