China, in his words · First term · № 42

On China

Told Asia-Pacific leaders the U.S. would no longer tolerate "chronic trade abuses"

“We can no longer tolerate these chronic trade abuses, and we will not tolerate them. ... I recently had an excellent trip to China, where I spoke openly and directly with President Xi about China's unfair trade practices and the enormous trade deficits they have produced with the United States.”
Said
, Remarks at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit, Da Nang, Vietnam
Subject
unfair trade practices
Threat
Economic threat
Topic
Trade & tariffs
Era
First term

What the record showed

In the same speech Trump said, "I do not blame China or any other country, of which there are many, for taking advantage of the United States on trade," and warned that the U.S. would no longer "turn a blind eye to violations, cheating, or economic aggression." The U.S. goods trade deficit with China rose from $375.2 billion in 2017 to $418.2 billion in 2018, the largest annual figure in the Census Bureau series. It was $342.6 billion in 2019, $308.0 billion in 2020 and $352.8 billion in 2021.

Sources

  1. Remarks at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation CEO Summit in Danang, Vietnam The American Presidency Project, Nov 10, 2017
  2. Trade in Goods with China U.S. Census Bureau, Sep 28, 2026