The former Trump official exhibits why China could be “worried” to conclude a price agreement

A former Trump and Expert Administration official in Asia pointed out on Friday, why China could hesitate to conclude a trade agreement with the United States in the midst of President Donald Trump’s pricing threats.

The context

The tensions between Washington and Beijing reached a boiling point last month, when Trump increased the prices on Chinese imports to 145%, to which China responded with a 125%reprisal rate. The movements occurred after Trump announced – then returned – emerging the world rates against almost all American business partners, China facing the steepest samples.

American-Chinese tensions seemed to simmer earlier this month, when representatives of the two countries met in Geneva and agreed to partially reduce their prices on each other while they negotiated a longer-term trade agreement.

But the secretary of the Treasury, Scott Bessent, said this week that talks had “blocked” and Trump accused China on Friday of having violated the preliminary agreement, adding: “So much to be Mr. Nice Guy!”

What to know

Daniel Kritenbrink, who was an ambassador to Vietnam, said on Friday that the Trump administration back and forth on prices could have a “real impact” on China’s desire to sign an official trade agreement with the United States

“Do you think-because I heard this other teams currently merchanting with the United States from Canada, from Europe-this fear that, ok, let’s say that we are reaching an agreement, if we go to all obstacles, from which there are many, can I trust what this administration signs?” Jim Sciutto of CNN asked Kritenbrink during an interview on Friday. “Will I be surprised in three months, six months, nine months later?

“I think that has a real impact,” said Kritenbrink, adding that China and other Asian countries are “used to being practical” and can “engage in transactional agreements with the United States and others”.

“But they want to know, will they last if we conclude an agreement?” Addition of Kritenbrink, which is associated with the Asia group and was secretary of state assistant to business in East and Pacific as part of the Biden administration.

Kritenbrink said that China is not only worried about the world rates that Trump announced in April under an economic law for emergency powers, but prices that have been implemented using other executive authorities.

“Thus, any agreement that China or other partners had to conclude could be compromised by these subsequent surveys and their results and they are also worried about it,” said Kritenbrink.

When asked if the price of a price rabbit could be “harmful” to the global position of the United States, Kritenbrink said that “the partners wanted consistency”.

“They want to know: can they count on the United States?” He said. “So I think it is the most important factor we face at the moment. And all that is undermined, I think, harm our status in the region.”

However, he noted that American trade partners “know that they need” from the United States and “want the United States to be hired”.

“They are ready to conclude agreements and therefore if the Trump administration is willing to conclude agreements with our partners in Asia, there are offers to have,” he said.

What people say

President Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social: “Two weeks ago, China was in serious economic danger! The very high prices that I made practically impossible for China to negotiate on the American market which is, by far, number one in the world. We went, in fact, cold turkey with China, and it was devastating for them. Many closed factories and there was, to say them, the civil distress. From what I thought was a very bad situation, and I didn’t want to see this happen.

Liu Pengyu, spokesperson for the Chinese embassy in Washington, said Nowsweek:: “Since the economic and commercial talks of China-US in Geneva, the two parties have maintained communication on their respective concerns in the economic and commercial fields of various bilateral and multilateral occasions on several levels.”

What happens next

Washington and Beijing will continue to discuss how to advance trade agreements between the two nations, emphasizing the reduction of prices.

Update of 05/30/25, 10:12 PM and: This article has been updated with additional information, context and comments.