With the US presidential election approaching on Nov 5, US bureau chief Bhagyashree Garekar and The Straits Times’ bureaus in Asia explore the impact of a new US president on trade and security in the region under a prospective Harris or second Trump administration. Expectations are low no matter who wins, but it would seem that Asia cautiously views US Vice-President Kamala Harris as the better option. WASHINGTON – Just four days after the 47th American president moves into the White House in 2025, a pair of VIPs from China will begin receiving a stream of excited visitors.
The much-awaited debut of the giant pandas on Jan 24 at Washington’s Smithsonian National Zoo, where they are now under quarantine, could hardly be timed better. The furry emblems of China’s soft power have charmed Americans since the Nixon years, but the bar is higher for the guileless Bao Li and Qing Bao. The relationship between the two great powers has frayed to the point of breakage.
And most of their Asian partners, bound to both countries through trade and security, wonder if it is all only downhill from now. Expectations are low no matter who wins the deadlocked Nov 5 election, but it would seem that Asia cautiously views Vice-President Kamala Harris as the better option. Former president Donald Trump’s second stint could come with massive tariff hikes and another trade war, with severe consequences for China-centric manufacturing networks across Asia.
His wish for a weaker US dollar can.
