In a sports park next to the red walls and glossy blue tiles which surround Beijing’s Temple of Heaven, a group of pensioners are working out. “I’m 74 and I hope this helps me live a long time,” one man says after he finishes his pull-ups, just as a cold wind blows leaves from cypress trees across the park, disrupting another man who is mid-headstand. Women reach for gloves and sweaters as they take turns hanging from an overhead assault course.
Chinese emperors once came to this Ming dynasty holy site to pray for a good harvest. Now the park is used by locals to enjoy their retirement after spending decades contributing to China’s spectacular growth. They’ve watched their country open up to the world and their factories propel its economy, which nips at the heels of the United States as the world’s largest.
But some fear what the promises of US president-elect Donald Trump – who has vowed steep tariffs on goods made in China - means for the country’s export-driven economy. After all, then-President Trump declared in 2020 that he and Chinese President Xi Jinping “love each other”, even in the midst of a bitter trade war with China. For many in China, Trump is a figure of fun and memes of him dancing to the YMCA are shared widely on social media.
Others worry that he’s too unpredictable. “I like Trump, but he’s unstable. Who knows what he might do?” says the 74-year-old pensioner, whose name has been withheld.
Some of Trump’s cabinet choices –.
