Here is another variable that doesn’t get enough attention.
America demands that China address its massive trade surplus. Ok, but what is it that America exports?
If you look into the official data, officially the largest exports out of America in 2024 are civilian aircraft parts ($123bn) and oil ($118bn).
Not included in the “official data” is the exports of weapon systems. For 2024 that totaled $319bn. Nearly triple the official top two categories. Great article on this provided below.
So, China has said it is open to addressing the trade issue, but America policy won’t be selling weapon systems to China. Moreover, basically everything that China does want to be from America is disallowed under “national security”. Can’t buy Nvidia chips, as example.
Al Jazeera
US hits record arms sales in 2024 driven by Ukraine demand
US arms export growth was driven by countries seeking to replenish weapons stocks that were donated to Ukraine.