The U.S. delegation headed by President Trump and the Chinese delegation headed by Chairman Xi Jinping attended a much anticipated bilateral dinner at the conclusion of the G20 summit in Argentina.  The dinner lasted for two and a half hours:


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Immediately following the dinner the U.S. delegation went straight to Airforce-One for the flight home.

(Reuters) […] With the United States and China locked in an economic dispute that has unnerved global financial markets and weighed on the world economy, Trump and Xi sat down with their aides for a working dinner at the conclusion of a two-day gathering of world leaders in Buenos Aires.
Trump told Xi at the start of the meeting he hoped they would achieve “something great” on trade for both countries. The leaders finished their talks after about 2-1/2 hours and Trump departed for his scheduled flight back to Washington.
While neither side issued any immediate statements on the outcome, White House chief economist Larry Kudlow told reporters as he boarded Air Force One that the talks went “very well.” He offered no specifics.
The editor of a major Chinese state-run newspaper also said the talks went well.
“Based on information I received, talks between Xi and Trump went well and consensus was reached,” Hu Xijin, the editor of the Global Times, published by the ruling Communist Party’s official People’s Daily, wrote on Twitter, without giving details.  (Read More)


It is likely the tariffs will continue until reciprocity improves.
The Big Club will go bananas next week.
There is no doubt in my mind that President Trump has a very well thought out long-term strategy regarding China. President Trump takes strategic messaging toward the people of China very importantly. President Trump has, very publicly, complimented the friendship he feels toward President Xi Jinping; and praises Chairman Xi for his character, strength and purposeful leadership. Trump knows how to play their panda/dragon games.
Each time China takes aggressive action (red dragon) China projects a panda face through silence and non-response to opinion of that action;…. and then the  action continues. The red dragon has a tendency to say one necessary thing publicly, while manipulating another necessary thing privately. The Art of War.
President Trump is the first U.S. President to understand how the red dragon hides behind the panda mask. Chairman Xi and President Trump are scheduled for a dinner on Saturday night; their first face-to-face meeting in a year.
The entire planet is focused on the dynamic of Chairman Xi and President Trump.  Billions waged on the position of an eyebrow, or the hint of a smile.  Epic stuff.  In the multinational finance world this is bigger than the moon landing, world cup and Olympics combined.  Every nuance and inference to be reviewed in slow-mo replay by hedge-fund managers looking for any indication of hope.
The funniest thing is Donald Trump doesn’t care about all that.  He has the desired ‘America First’ outcome gamed out; POTUS is only looking to see which direction Xi is leaning.  From there Trump puts the instructions to the team (Mnuchin, Pompeo, Ross, Lighthizer and Navarro); yet even they don’t know the full plan, no-one does except President Trump… for a reason.
The Wall Street global financial crowd is on pins-and-needles hoping desperately the confrontation between China and the U.S. doesn’t escalate.
Meanwhile, blue-collar Main Street USA is hoping ‘bull-in-a-china-shop-Trump‘ punches Xi in the nose; diplomatically of course.
The bamboo forest is shrinking…

 

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