It’s not a bluff; it’s never a bluff…. He doesn’t bluff.  I’ve looked through the interviews, writing and granules of opponents describing hundreds of deals, and I cannot find a single person who ever said that Donald Trump was bluffing during any negotiations.

NYT cont. […] In recent days, officials from the Commerce Ministry, the police and other agencies have summoned exporters to ask about plans to lay off workers or shift supply chains to other countries.

With stocks slumping and the currency dropping 9 percent against the dollar since mid-April, censors have been deleting a torrent of criticism online, some of it directed at President Xi Jinping’s leadership.  State news outlets, by contrast, have sought to promote the official line, with the authorities restricting the use of the phrase “trade war.”

[…] If the trade war escalates — and Mr. Trump has shown no sign of backing down — some worry that the public’s faith in the economy could be shaken, exposing the nation to much more serious problems than a drop in exports. New economic data on Tuesday showed slower growth in investment and consumer spending, and there are fears that the financial crisis in Turkey could spread.

China’s leaders have argued that they can outlast Mr. Trump in a trade standoff. Their authoritarian system can stifle dissent and quickly redirect resources, and they expect Washington to be gridlocked and come under pressure from voters feeling the pain of trade disruptions.

But the Communist Party is vulnerable in its own way. It needs growth to justify its monopoly on power and is obsessed with preventing social instability. Mr. Xi’s strongman grip may be hindering effective policymaking, as officials fail to pass on bad news, defer decisions to him and rigidly carry out his orders, for better or worse.  (read more)

It would appear that Chairman Xi, like Justin from Canada, is rolling the economic dice based on advice from those close to him, and betting the 2018 mid-term elections will block President Trump from carrying out the America-First, pro-middle-class, U.S. trade reset.
In a typical Beijing maneuver Chairman Xi appears to be counting on the stupidity of the American voter to help China create leverage in the aftermath of POTUS Trump destroying all former dragon trade strategies.
If the MAGA movement can hold the 2018 mid-term elections, and if we can deliver Trump the victory he/we need, there is going to be a seismic shift in the entire global trade system the likes of which have never been contemplated.  A massive shift so economically consequential it is simply too incredible to even quantify.
Trillions will pour into the U.S.

 
 

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