Hindi English Translation || Editorial || ​Chinese check: On the détente in the U.S.-China trade war

​Chinese check: On the détente in the U.S.-China trade war

China has entrenched (मज़बूत करना) itself as the world’s foremost factory

While there may be much relief after the détente in the tariff (शुल्क) war between China and the U.S., in Busan, South Korea, following the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, the uneasy truce (युद्धविराम) has laid bare a structural inversion of power between the two economies. What began in the 1980s as a reluctant (अनिच्छुक) embrace (गले लगाना, अपनाना) of World Bank/IMF-prescribed neoliberal reforms by an overwhelmingly agrarian China, has now evolved into an unimaginable assertion (दावा) of industrial dominance. A nation that once bartered sovereignty for technology transfer and market access has, through patient accumulation of manufacturing depth, labour arbitrage (The simultaneous buying and selling of securities, currency, or commodities in different markets or in derivative forms to take advantage of differing prices for the same asset), and global supply-chain integration, positioned itself as the indispensable node of world production. The irony is sharp. The U.S., whose export and technology corporations once defined global trade cycles, now finds its four-year political rhythms ill-suited to contest a rival that plans in decades. The concessions Mr. Trump has extended to Mr. Xi include some reductions in tariffs, a pause on additions to the “no-trade list” of Chinese firms, and a partial rollback on levies linked to the fentanyl supply-chain dispute. China has promised resumption (पुनः शुरू करना) of purchase of American farm products, particularly soybean, and an easing of export restrictions on critical minerals.

America’s tariff offensives since Mr. Trump’s first term in 2017 did yield some numerical optics. U.S. goods trade deficit with China narrowed by roughly 30%. But economists across the spectrum agree that this was less a triumph of re-industrialisation than a diversion of trade flows. The deficit was largely re-routed through near-shoring and friend-shoring: Mexico, Vietnam and parts of ASEAN became new intermediaries (मध्यस्थ) for supply chains once centred in China. Meanwhile, China’s exporters diversified (विविधता लाना) markets and adjusted prices, while the tariffs’ direct burden was borne mostly by U.S. importers and consumers. The human geography of the impact was asymmetric: in the U.S., retaliatory Chinese tariffs targeted farm-belt commodities, hurting those very rural constituencies that powered Mr. Trump’s rise. Federal subsidies softened the blow, but only temporarily. In China, the pain was concentrated in export-processing hubs such as Guangdong and Suzhou, where migrant and urban workers in electronics, semiconductor, and smartphone assembly absorbed the shock. Yet, the political fallout remained contained, cushioned by Beijing’s domestic-stimulus measures and its “dual-circulation” strategy of inward and outward rebalancing. This trade war has thus underscored a decisive (Settling an issue finally and effectively; having or showing the ability to make decisions quickly and effectively) shift: the U.S. remains the world’s largest consumer market, but China has entrenched itself as the world’s foremost factory with global leverage (फ़ायदा उठाना) over intermediate goods, high-end technology and critical minerals.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.Entrench (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – मज़बूत करना
English Meaning – To establish (an attitude, habit, or belief) so firmly that change is very difficult or unlikely; to firmly establish a military position.

2.Tariff (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – शुल्क
English Meaning – A tax or duty to be paid on a particular class of imports or exports; a list of fixed charges, especially for a hotel or restaurant.

3.Truce (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – युद्धविराम
English Meaning – An agreement between enemies or opponents to stop fighting or arguing for a certain time; a temporary cessation of hostilities.

4.Embrace (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – गले लगाना, अपनाना
English Meaning – To hold (someone) closely in one's arms, especially as a sign of affection; to accept or support (a belief, theory, or change) willingly and enthusiastically.

5.Reluctant (Adjective)

Hindi Meaning – अनिच्छुक
English Meaning – Unwilling and hesitant; disinclined.

6.Assertion (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – दावा
English Meaning – A confident and forceful statement of fact or belief; the act of asserting.

7.Resumption (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – पुनः शुरू करना
English Meaning – The action of beginning something again after a pause or interruption.

8.Intermediary (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – मध्यस्थ
English Meaning – A person who acts as a link between people in order to try to bring about an agreement; a mediator.

9.Leverage (Noun)

Hindi Meaning – फ़ायदा उठाना
English Meaning – The exertion of force by means of a lever; the use of borrowed capital to increase the potential return of an investment; to use (something) to maximum advantage.

10.Diversify (Verb)

Hindi Meaning – विविधता लाना
English Meaning – To increase the variety of products, ventures, or interests; to spread (investments) over different opportunities.

11.Decisive (Adjective)

English Meaning – Settling an issue finally and effectively; having or showing the ability to make decisions quickly and effectively.

12.Arbitrage (Noun)

English Meaning – The simultaneous buying and selling of securities, currency, or commodities in different markets or in derivative forms to take advantage of differing prices for the same asset.