As Donald Trump’s April 2 “Liberation Day” for announcing “reciprocal” tariffs on America’s trading partners approaches, the question in Beijing is whether this will be the moment when its nascent trade war with the US really escalates.

Merchants purchase goods at China Yiwu International Trade City, in Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, on Feb. 9, 2025. Editor at Large Christmas comes early to Yiwu, a bustling entrepôt just a couple hours by train from China’s coastal megacity of Shanghai.

South Korea, China and Japan held their first economic dialog in five years on Sunday, seeking to facilitate regional trade as the three Asian export powers brace from U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs.