Well, well, well—looks like China just blinked. On Tuesday, the Chinese Communist Party quietly waived its massive 125 percent tariff on U.S. ethane imports. That’s not a minor tweak, folks—that’s a big red flag waving high over Beijing signaling that President Trump’s America First tariff strategy is doing exactly what it was designed to do: force China to come to the table, hat in hand.
Let’s not forget, this tariff was originally part of China’s retaliation for Trump hitting them where it hurts—with increased duties on Chinese goods while other nations got a temporary pass and a measly 10 percent. Unlike Biden’s globalist policy of begging foreign leaders for favors, Trump’s strategy is simple: make China feel real economic pain until they’re willing to deal fairly. Guess what? It’s working.
China consumes nearly half of America’s ethane exports. That’s not some niche commodity—it’s a vital raw material used in plastics and chemicals, which powers China’s massive industrial engine. Their top buyers—Sinopec, SP Chemicals, Wanhua, the whole gang—depend heavily on American ethane. And our top exporters, like Enterprise Products and Energy Transfer, are happy to provide it. But not if China wants to play games with 125 percent tariffs.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent didn’t miss a beat in calling this what it is: a victory. Speaking from the White House, Bessent laid out the math. “They sell almost five times more goods to us than we sell to them,” he said. “The onus is on them.” That’s the leverage President Trump understands, and that’s why we’re watching China slowly unravel its own tariff web.
Bessent wasn’t done. He warned that China could lose up to 10 million jobs if it keeps playing tariff roulette. Think the CCP can survive that kind of unemployment without mass unrest? Yeah, me neither. That’s why they’re scrambling to exempt more than just ethane—last week they added pharmaceuticals, microchips, and even aircraft engines to the “don’t-tariff-these-or-we’re-doomed” list.
And while China stumbles, Team Trump is forging new alliances. India’s looking promising, according to Bessent. Vice President J.D. Vance’s recent trip seems to have lit a fire under Prime Minister Modi, and trade deals with Japan and South Korea may be right behind.
Bottom line? President Trump’s tough-love tariff policy is reshaping global trade. China’s backing down, new deals are brewing, and American industry is once again calling the shots. That’s what leadership looks like.
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