Trump emphasizes friendly relations

During Xi Jinping's visit to Washington, Donald Trump emphasized cordial relations between the U.S. and China, despite ongoing tensions. The New York Times reported that Trump downplayed China's actions that affect U.S. interests during the visit.

Sino-American rivalry intensifies

In autumn 2025, Sino-American rivalry reached its peak, with U.S. tariffs approaching 40% and significant technological sanctions on Chinese firms. China retaliated with expanded export restrictions and a ban on strategic materials such as gallium and germanium.

Korean truce eases some tensions

A truce in Korea, negotiated in October 2025, reduced tariffs to about 30% and eased some restrictions, benefiting both sides. However, the battle for control over semiconductor manufacturing continues, with the U.S. maintaining sanctions against Chinese tech and China relaxing some export restrictions.

U.S. secures rare earth resources

In the weeks preceding the Korean truce, Trump signed mining agreements with Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Morocco to bypass China's near-monopoly on rare earths. Trump also continued financial support for the critical metals sector, promoted domestic extraction, and implemented a price floor system for strategic minerals.

U.S. seeks global digital dominance

The U.S. strategy aims to maintain control over the digital infrastructure of the global market, as outlined in its 2025 AI action plan. This strategy seeks to "exercise global dominance by controlling the production of social information and knowledge in all forms," according to Cecilia Rikap's book The Rulers - Corporate Power in the Age of AI and the Cloud.

China invests in core technologies

China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) aims to achieve "decisive advances in key core technologies," focusing on artificial intelligence. China has also increased its investments in the New Silk Road, injecting 213 billion dollars in 2025, a 75% increase compared to 2024.

Digital currency rivalry emerges

The monetary antagonism has also expanded to the digital space, with the U.S. pushing for dollar-backed stablecoins through the Genius Act of July 2025. This aims to reinforce the dollar's position in international payments. In response, China is advancing the internationalization of the renminbi, with the CIPS payment system's transaction value rising from 26 trillion yuan in late 2022 to 45 trillion yuan in late 2025.

U.S. faces domestic economic challenges

In the U.S., the relationship with the global market has become explosive, with the promise of social pacification through globalization broken. Inflation and rising living costs have exacerbated social tensions, with the share of labor in value added collapsing to 52.8%, the lowest since 1947.