China looks for U.S. cooperation; media blames ‘US hawks’ for strained ties

RFA Staff2024.11.06

Updated at 12:45 pm ET on Nov. 6, 2024

Beijing on Wednesday gave a muted reaction to the U.S. presidential election victory for Donald Trump, as state media hit out at “U.S. hawks” and called on the incoming president to improve bilateral ties.

Foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a press briefing that China’s policy towards the United States would remain “consistent.”

“We will continue to view and handle Sino-U.S. relations in accordance with the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation,” Mao said.

But the China Daily, in a commentary titled “Onus on new U.S. president to improve ties,” expressed frustration with “U.S. hawks” for the deterioration in Sino-American relations.

“No matter who wins the election, the result will have a far-reaching impact on the world, not least because the winner will decide the U.S.’s China policy,” Chinese academics Fu Suixin and Ni Feng wrote in the commentary.

“The new U.S. administration, therefore, should give up the illusion of having a consensual China policy, and reflect on the costs of undermining Sino-U.S. relations over the past eight years — and honestly tell the American people the truth about China,” they said.

Veteran political commentator Zheng Xuguang said Chinese people have “very complicated feelings” towards the United States.

“There is huge admiration in Chinese popular culture for those who are strong,” he said, citing the fact that U.S. presidential candidates\’ campaign merchandise was all made in China.

“Trump claims that he wants to promote American manufacturing, yet all his (campaign) hats were made in Yiwu, and they even have to buy their campaign flags from us,” Zheng said. “There is a kind of gloating and a hidden pride in that.”

“It’s saying that the United States may be strong, but so is China.”

Sanctions on China?

In Hong Kong, Trump is remembered as the president who got tough on China at the height of the 2019 pro-democracy movement. He signed the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act imposing sanctions on officials linked to human rights abuses amid the citywide crackdown on protests and public dissent.

On the campaign trail, Trump also pledged to secure the release of jailed pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai.

“He may not have values that are strongly skewed towards fighting for democracy and human rights, but he is willing … to offend China if he is in competition with China,” exiled pro-democracy lawmaker Ted Hui said in an interview with RFA Cantonese on Nov. 5.

“If Trump is elected, he could impose even stronger sanctions on China, which could also help the people of Hong Kong fight for freedom and democracy,” he said.

He said one bargaining chip in negotiations with Beijing could be calls to shut down the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices in the United States.

“Just how much they contribute to the United States and how much they bring to the Chinese economy make them a good bargaining chip in political negotiation,” Hui said.

Stimulus package

The U.S. election result also comes amid ongoing economic uncertainty in China, however, also sparking concerns among Hong Kongers.

An electronics retailer who gave only the surname Yue for fear of reprisals said his suppliers would likely be pulling out of China.

“The key manufacturers in my industry are all in mainland China, but … a lot of them are getting ready to move their factories to Thailand and Vietnam to avoid tariffs,” Yue said.

On Hong Kong’s stock market, the Hang Seng Index dropped 2.2% after Trump claimed victory in the election on Wednesday.

In mainland China, the National People’s Congress Standing Committee is meeting in Beijing from Nov. 2-8 to discuss potential rescue packages for the economy.

But so far it has only announced curbs on local government borrowing, sparking speculation that the ruling Communist Party may be holding off on announcing fiscal stimulus measures until the full impact of the U.S. election result becomes clear.

According to Bloomberg, lawmakers will be looking to recapitalize major state lenders, but further measures may not be announced until after major policy meetings in December and March.

The report quoted analysts as saying that a Trump victory could force Beijing to step up efforts to boost domestic demand, given the Republican candidate’s threat to slap heavy tariffs on Chinese goods.

An eventual fiscal stimulus package could reach 2%-3% of GDP, the agency quoted economists at Goldman Sachs, Macquarie Group, and Nomura Holdings as saying.

Wang Kuo-chen, assistant researcher at Taiwan’s Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research, said Beijing has postponed announcing a substantial fiscal stimulus package despite hinting at such an announcement since Sept. 24.

“The rest of the world has been awaiting a much larger scale package of rescue measures since Sept. 24, and yet this has been continually postponed and delayed, first until the National People’s Congress Standing Committee meeting, and then until after the U.S. presidential election,” he said.

“I think the markets are expecting a much larger rescue package from China.”

Online reaction

Chinese social media users were commenting in large numbers as the U.S. election result topped the Weibo list of search terms midday Wednesday.

Some said they believed that Trump’s tariffs pledge would make life harder for China, or would make global conflict more likely, while others seemed disengaged from the result.

“No matter who won, there wouldn’t be peace,” commented Weibo user @Miss_Darcy under a post on Trump’s declaration of victory from state broadcaster CCTV, while @Komi9893 replied from the southern province of Guangdong: “Trump … only cares about America, not other countries … Trump will impose more economic and technological blockades on China, forcing more international companies to stop cooperating with us.”

@I-wanna-get-rich-overnight commented from the northern province of Hebei: “The car of the American Empire is now self-driving, so it will be the same regardless of who gets on board.”

“What does this have to do with China?” @Orange_flavored_wine wanted to know, while @befighting020 added: “Yes, no matter who wins, it’s all about their own interests.”

But @Tangyuan_Xiaoji commented that developments in the United States would have an impact on global politics and conflict.

“If there is a war, China will still have to support other countries quietly, so how can you say that a war has nothing to do with China?”

@Soma had some trade concerns, commenting: “Tariffs will be raised on China, there will be a trade war, and China will find trade with Europe and the United States gets very difficult as there will be countless sanctions.”

“Everyone is already having a tough time, and things are going to get even more difficult now,” the comment said.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Luisetta Mudie, Mike Firn and Malcolm Foster.

Updates with additional quotes and comments from social media users.