Trump plaits anti-China push

BIARRITZ, France (AFP) — President Donald Trump doubled down Sunday on his hard line against China after sowing confusion with statements that he might be willing to soften a trade war G7 partners fear threatens the world economy.

The positives were overshadowed by a mix-up over his apparent expression of regret for the latest escalation in the US-China dispute

At the G7 summit in Biarritz, France, Trump announced a major trade deal with Japan and promised more of the same with Britain, once Brexit is done.

But the positives were overshadowed by a mix-up over his apparent expression of regret for the latest escalation in the US-China dispute.

“I have second thoughts about everything,” he conceded to reporters when asked if he regretted his decision on Friday to ramp up tariffs on all Chinese imports, worth some $550 billion, in retaliation for Beijing’s earlier hike of levies on US goods.

Just hours later, top White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham issued a statement insisting that Trump meant completely the opposite.

“The president was asked if he had ‘any second thought on escalating the trade war with China’. His answer has been greatly misinterpreted,” she said.

“President Trump responded in the affirmative — because he regrets not raising the tariffs higher.”

Senior US economy adviser Larry Kudlow offered a different spin: “He didn’t quite hear the question this morning.”

Others attending the G7 summit of wealthy allies certainly wished for detente between Beijing and Washington.

European leaders pressured Trump to back off what he describes as a historic, all-or-nothing struggle to shift China from decades of rampant intellectual property theft and other unfair trade practices.

Trump is also embroiled in threats of a trade war with France and the European Union.