Donald Trump said Tuesday that he planned to sign the first phase of a trade deal with China on Jan. 15, according to Politico. It's still not crystal clear exactly what China has agreed to, since Beijing hasn't confirmed what U.S. officials are saying publicly. But according the Trump administration, China will spend about $200 billion more on American farm products, energy, and manufactured goods over the next couple of years.
In return, Trump scrapped his threat to enact a 15% tariff on another $160 billion in Chinese goods, including products popular with consumers over the holidays such as laptops and smartphones. Trump also eased tariffs on $120 billion in goods from 15% to 7.5% but maintained a 25% duty on some $250 billion worth of goods.
Trump announced via tweet that the deal would be signed at a White House ceremony, presumably so he can take credit for beginning to clean up the mess he has made of U.S. trade policy vis-a-vis China. But the fruition of phases two and three are much less certain. While further tariff reductions may be in the offing, tackling stickier issues such as China's support of state-owned enterprises and theft of U.S. intellectual property remains illusive. Specifically, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro told CNBC that Beijing's "cyber intrusions into our business networks and the broader problem of espionage" are issues that still need to be addressed.
Gee, that sure sounds like exactly what Trump has been complaining about all along. So all his administration appears to have accomplished is a de-escalation of the trade war he started that has subsequently wreaked havoc in certain regions of the nation, particularly farm country. In other words, Trump's made zero progress on the very issue that fueled his criticism of Beijing to begin with.