China's lawmakers gather for the 14th National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, on March 5.
Photographer: Ding Haitao/Xinhua/Getty Images
Trump’s Tariffs Push Xi to Overhaul China’s Ailing Growth Model
A more decisive shift toward domestic consumption is needed to meet the country’s long-term goals.
The difference couldn’t have been more stark: All of China’s lawmakers slow-clapping in unison as Xi Jinping walked into the Great Hall of the People, followed by a raucous US Congress split between two camps alternatively cheering and jeering Donald Trump.
The contrasting scenes played out back-to-back in different parts of the world on Wednesday morning in Asia, underscoring the growing divide between two economies that spent much of the past few decades becoming more intertwined, largely with China selling goods to US consumers. Now President Trump wants the US to make more, and China wants its people to spend more.