While President Trump’s unorthodox deal making style has intentionally resembled a “bull in a china shop,” it was more like a placid cow in a field last week in China. The world collectively took a deep breath following the U.S.-China Summit, as neither Trump nor Chinese President Xi Jinping escalated the ongoing trade war between the two nations. However, among global leaders, business chief executives, and everyday consumers, many questions remain. Yesterday I asked 35 sophisticated Chinese CEOs if the Summit was a “12” on a grading scale of one to 10. Perhaps unsurprisingly, only two agreed. As the summit has been examined from nearly every possible angle, two primary narratives have emerged.
On the one hand, engaging constructively is a positive step, even if small. Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon highlighted this on Fox Business. He emphasized the importance of the heads of the two largest economies meeting face-to-face to reach “a more constructive place than we’ve been over the course of the last couple of months.” Solomon said he does not believe a decoupling will occur, but he appropriately asserted that the U.S. needs a new policy to address longstanding market manipulations by China.
