Donald Trump engineered a remarkably quick retreat on Tuesday from his latest aggressive move in the trade war with China, delaying some new tariffs on consumer goods that were set to take effect on September 1 for more than two months, until mid December.
Yet there are scant hopes that the gesture will pave the way for a resumption of serious negotiations leading to a lasting peace in the trade war consuming Washington and Beijing.
“This seeming de-escalation in ongoing tensions may be a temporary reprieve,” said Elena Duggar, associate managing director at Moody’s, the rating agency. “Relations between the world's two largest economies will remain contentious, punctuated with occasional steps towards compromise,” she added.