US seeks China's help to ease inflation in latest interaction

The US looks at reducing China tariffs amid soaring inflation in the country 

 

US and China Discuss Trump-Era Tariffs Biden May Ease

Yang Jiechi (center), a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Leading Group for Foreign Affairs, criticizes human rights issues in the US at the opening session of US-China talks in Anchorage, Alaska on March 18, 2021. Photo: AFP

 

The US is seeking help from China to ease its economic pressure, hinting that it may ease tariffs on Chinese goods and engage in dialogue with senior Chinese officials more often. However, analysts said Beijing will approach Washington's overtures with caution, as it is still trying to use the tariffs as bargaining chips rather than sincerely correcting its mistakes that have harmed both sides.

Chinese Vice Premier Liu He, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chief of the Chinese side of the China-US comprehensive economic dialogue, held a conversation via video link with US Secretary of Treasury Janet Yellen at the latter's request on Tuesday morning, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

As agreed by China and the US, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will meet with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during the meeting of G20 foreign ministers, Chinese Foreign Ministry announced on Tuesday. In June, the defense chiefs of both sides met in Singapore on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue, and Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, met with US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Luxembourg.

Such frequent communications between senior officials of the two sides show that China and the US are making efforts to manage the differences and competition to prevent escalation caused by miscalculations, while at the same time, the US is trying to seek China's help to ease the serious inflation the US is being confronted with, analysts said.

Chinese analysts said on Tuesday that although its economy is in disarray, the US is still being provocative in geopolitical issues to contain China. This means the US should not expect China to provide significant support for it to solve its domestic problems. The US tariffs have turned out to have a limited impact on the Chinese economy, and these are just part of the mistakes that the US must correct to bring bilateral ties back on track.

Heavy pressure

During the Liu-Yellen conversation on Tuesday, the two sides had a pragmatic and candid exchange of views on such topics as the macroeconomic situation and the stability of global industrial and supply chains. Their exchanges were constructive, the Xinhua reported on Tuesday.

The two sides agreed that as the world economy is facing severe challenges, it is of great significance to strengthen macro-policy communication and coordination between China and the US. Jointly maintaining the stability of global industrial and supply chains is in the interests of both countries and the whole world. The Chinese side expressed its concern about issues including the lifting of additional tariffs on China and sanctions by the US side, and fair treatment of Chinese enterprises, the Xinhua reported.

Lü Xiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Tuesday that the US has been forced to engage with China because of its dreadful domestic economic situation.

"Joe Biden now is having a big headache as his approval rating is even lower than his predecessor Donald Trump at the same stage of presidency, which is a great humiliation. The pressure to win the midterms is heavy and serious, so he must find solutions to at least make some changes," Lü said.

Biden's approval rating was 39 percent as of June 30, according to an analysis by poll tracker FiveThirtyEight, while 56.2 percent of Americans disapproved of the way the president is handling his job, according to the Newsweek.

Trump's approval rating on July 1, 2018 was 41.8 percent, while 52.3 percent of Americans disapproved of him, figures from FiveThirtyEight show.

In 2018, Republicans suffered a major defeat in the midterm elections and lost 40 seats in the House of Representatives, handing control to the Democrats and allowing Nancy Pelosi to return as speaker.

Experts said the main factor that could influence the midterms later this year is the economy, so if the Biden administration cannot deliver some positive changes to ease inflation and gas prices and stop the economic decline, the Democrats are likely to repeat the failure of the Republicans in 2018.

Far from easing tension

According to Bloomberg on Tuesday, Biden may announce as soon as this week a rollback of some US tariffs on Chinese consumer goods - as well as a new probe into industrial subsidies that could lead to more duties in strategic areas like technology.

Although decreasing tariffs on Chinese goods has become an option for the US to solve some of its economic problems, it is still not clear what measures the US government will take next, experts said.

According to one estimate by the New York Federal Reserve, US tariffs imposed on Chinese goods through the middle of 2019 cost the American household an average of $831 per year.

"Decreasing tariffs on Chinese goods is a way to decrease inflation without the danger of hurting economic growth, but the US is not sure about the extent to which the tariff cuts would be effective in controlling price hikes. Therefore, the US government is still worrying about gains and losses and can't make up its mind," Gao Lingyun, a trade specialist with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

Bai Ming, deputy director of the international market research institute at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told the Global Times on Tuesday that "under the US' general strategy of containing China's rise, which is unlikely to change in the short term, the US might adjust some of the punitive tariffs on Chinese consumer goods, but at the same time intensify pressure on China, such as increasing sanctions on Chinese tech firms."

Lü said that judging from the US' failed COVID-19 pandemic response, Afghanistan withdrawal, inflation and the Ukraine crisis, we found "the US system of command is problematic, and the coordination between White House staff and cabinet officials is desperately wanting. Therefore, in the future, we have to be prepared for many uncertainties and even some overnight contingencies." He added that it is caused by the problematic decision-making system of the US side.

What should China do?

Gao said that China should insist on an reciprocal tariff policy with the US, meaning cutting the same amount of tariffs on US goods if the US reduces tariffs on Chinese products. China should also insist that tariff reductions should bring benefits to both countries, he said.

Bai noted that China should stick to its dual circulation policy, especially focusing on internal circulation so external policies would not affect China's economy to a great extent.

Chen Jia, a research fellow at the International Monetary Institute of the Renmin University of China, said that market data show that the US economy is deeply bogged down in stagflation, while recessionary risks are increasing, which means the US is still far from reaching a turning point to stop its economic situation from worsening.

On the other hand, the US is not making even small concessions in global strategies, rather it is showing an inclination to toughen the strategic encirclement of China, such as the recent Partnership for Global Infrastructure to target the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

"If the US is willing to seize the opportunity to restart China-US high-level communication on the basis of economic cooperation, and move to repair the damage it has caused in the past, China would of course welcome and support those moves. But if the US continues to treat its global partners arrogantly, then it won't get any help from developing countries including China," Chen told the Global Times. 

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STILL AMRICA FIRST IN TRADE

Domestic drive: The US has endorsed ‘Buy American’ policies, which would favour domestic producers but would be blatantly illegal under WTO rules.

 

https://youtu.be/vcn5Lxshw20 

US’s intention to destroy China will be a difficult process 

 

https://youtu.be/_3tjcoudjbI

US multilateralism is coming back in many areas but in trade, many retrograde policies of the past are continuing.

AFTER the end of the Trump presidency in January, multilateralists around the world heaved a collective sigh of relief.

Gone would be the wrecking ball aimed at international institutions.

Gone would be the go-it-alone approach to dealing with global problems. Gone would be policies towards the rest of the world premised on “America First”.

Gone, hopefully, would be the capricious trade wars, some of them directed at American allies.

To a large extent, these high hopes have proved justified.

Within its first 40 days, the Biden administration has reversed many of its predecessor’s disengagements from multilateral institutions and processes.

It has rejoined the Paris Agreement on climate change, which the United States had abandoned in 2017.

It walked back to former president Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the World Health Organisation (WHO), which was due to take effect from July 6.

It has pledged US$4bil (RM16bil) for the WHO-sponsored Covax initiative which aims to distribute Covid-19 vaccines to the developing world, which the Trump administration refused to join.

It has agreed to endorse an allocation of special drawing rights – the International Monetary Fund’s hard currency – which would provide additional resources to poor countries without adding to their debt, and which former Treasury secretary Steve Mnuchin had declined to support.

Given that the World Bank is the world’s biggest financier of climate change-related investments, its president David Malpass reasonably expects that the Biden administration, for which battling climate change is a priority, will be supportive of its mission.

The administration has also vowed the US’ “unshakeable” commitment to Nato, which Trump had derided as an outdated organisation that imposes excessive burdens on the US.

But there is one critical area where the Biden administration is hesitant to support multilateralism, and that is trade.

Here, multilateralists can be grateful for some small mercies.

At least the administration has affirmed its commitment to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) – the custodian and enforcer of world trade rules – which the Trump administration all but ignored during the last four years and even threatened to leave.

It has also broken the impasse over WTO’s leadership, by endorsing the candidacy of Nigerian-American economist Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala for the post of directorgeneral, which was supported by the majority of the WTO’s 164 members, but which the Trump administration had blocked.

So, after being leaderless for almost six months, the WTO now at least has someone in charge.

Modest ambitions

But beyond that, and judging by actions rather than words, the multilateralist ambitions of the Biden administration on trade appear modest.

It has made clear that it will not pursue any trade agreements until it restores America’s competitiveness by investing trillions of dollars in areas such as energy, education and infrastructure.

It has endorsed “Buy American” policies, which would favour domestic producers and would be blatantly illegal under WTO rules.

Citing “systemic problems”, it has continued the Trump administration’s policy of blocking appointments of new judges to the WTO’s appellate body, which functions as a “supreme court” that adjudicates trade disputes.

The body has been unable to issue any judgments since Dec 11, 2019, because it did not have the minimum of three members required to issue a ruling.

Currently, with all judges having completed their terms, there is not a single judge on the body. This means that any appeal against a judgment by a lower panel at the WTO disappears into legal limbo, and the judgment is not binding.

In September last year, a lower panel ruled in favour of China, which made the case that the 25% tariffs levied by the US in June and September 2018 violated the WTO’s cardinal principle of non-discrimination.

The US is appealing that judgment, but the appeal cannot be heard, as the US would know, so the tariffs will remain in place.

Indeed, the Biden administration appears in no hurry to lift the Trump administration’s tariffs on China, all of which are likely to be WTO-illegal, according to trade experts.

It wants to use these tariffs as leverage to secure concessions from Beijing, including its compliance with the phase one trade deal negotiated by the Trump administration under which China was supposed to buy US$ 200 bil worth of US goods and services split over last year and this year, but is falling short of the target.

It has also continued the Trump administration’s policy of designating Hong Kong’s exports as “Made in China”, citing “national security” concerns – which means that in the US view, that issue, too, cannot be adjudicated by the WTO.

In short, a return to multilateralism on trade does not seem to be a priority for the Biden administration.

‘Elephant in the room’

The rise of China is one of the main sources of this reticence.

Like the Republicans, Democrats believe that the WTO is not fit for purpose in dealing with all of China’s alleged trade malpractices.

The case for this is well articulated in a 2016 paper by Harvard Law School Prof Mark Wu, now a senior adviser to the US Trade Representative’s office.

He argues that the main problem is that WTO rules – which were crafted before China joined the organisation – were not made with China’s distinctive economic system in mind.

WTO rules can address only those among China’s trade malpractices which are shared by other countries – such as requiring foreign investors to partner with local firms and buy from local suppliers, or granting exclusive rights to local firms to import or sell goods in the local market – which are practices that are not unique to China, and for which case law already exists.

But problems arise in cases where the boundaries between state and private enterprises are blurred, as is often the case in China. It is then not easy to judge whether a preferential transaction is of a private commercial nature – which falls outside the WTO rules – or amounts to a state subsidy.

At the heart of the problem is what constitutes a “public body”, which in China is not as clear as in other countries.

It is widely accepted, including by WTO itself, that WTO rules need to be updated, not only relating to China but also to issues such as digital trade, competition, services, labour and the environment.

But China, which is involved in the majority of trade disputes involving major economic powers, is the “elephant in the room”.

However, updating the rules should not mean sidelining the WTO in the meantime, which is what seems to be happening.

In a departure from the unilateral approach taken by the Trump administration, the Biden administration says it plans to deal with China’s trade practices in concert with other countries.

But there is no better way to do this than in a multilateral forum like the WTO, which applies a core set of principles to trade disputes such as non-discrimination, has mechanisms to monitor and enforce its rules and which would accommodate the concerns of multiple countries, which is how multilateralism should work.

Besides, China has a good record of complying with WTO rulings that go against it, and not such a good record of caving in to bilateral pressures.

Judicial paralysis

Shutting down the WTO’s judicial function by effectively neutralising its appellate body is especially ill advised.

Some concerns about the way the body functions and its alleged “judicial overreach” may be legitimate, but even if so, this applies only to a minority of cases that the body has adjudicated.

Disabling the WTO’s appellate body prevents the majority of cases, including those unrelated to China, from being resolved.

Besides, for all the criticisms levelled against it, the appellate body has a proud record.

In its 25 years of operation, it has resolved 195 disputes compared with around 160 cases completed in 74 years by the International Court of Justice, with 15 standing judges. Moreover, it has disposed of cases within a few months on average, compared with a few years in the case of other international adjudicating bodies.

Recounting these achievements in her farewell speech on Nov 30 last year, the last appellate judge to finish her term, Dr Zhao Hong, pointed out: “Though there was room to improve, the appellate body distinguishes itself for its outstanding performance among all international adjudicating bodies.”

By continuing to paralyse its functioning, the Biden administration undermines multilateralism and perpetuates the law of the jungle on trade issues, where might is right.

So while the administration has made a good start by re-embracing multilateralism in many areas, its trade policies still leave much to be desired.

-By VIKRAM KHANNA— The Straits Times/ANN

Diplomatic realpolitik

 

AS double-think runs wild in the White House, Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS) of Saudi Arabia must be enjoying a quiet chuckle. Diplomatic realpolitik has been accorded precedence over the severe action that was expected of President Joe Biden in the context of the US intelligence report that the Crown Prince was complicit in the ghastly killing of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October 2018.

The Washington Post columnist was allegedly drugged and his body dismembered. Every tenet of human rights was thus violated.

By advancing what they call a “free pass” to MBS, America’s President has proffered a feeble excuse to justify his defence of the de facto leader of the desert kingdom. Biden, who had referred to Saudi Arabia as a “pariah kingdom with no redeeming social value” in course of his election campaign, has now softened his stance to a dramatic degree.

It thus comes about that in the somewhat surprising reckoning of the US President, the price of directly penalising Saudi Arabia’s crown prince is “too high”.

He may be right when viewed through the prism of certitudes of foreign policy.

The US President was reportedly convinced by his newly formed national security team that there was no way to formally bar the Saudi crown prince from entering the United States or to take a call on the criminal charges against him.

Altogether, it was feared by the current US administration that a drastic reprisal would have breached the equation with one of America’s key Arab allies, not to discount the flutter within the Arab region generally.

There is said to have been a consensus in the White House that the price of that breach was quite “simply too high” in terms of Saudi cooperation in the fight against terrorism and in confronting Iran.

Biden had been urged by a section of the establishment to at least impose the same travel restrictions against the Crown Prince as the Trump administration had imposed on others involved in the plot.

The White House appears to have drawn a fine distinction between MBS and the Saudi military. While the Crown Prince is unlikely to be invited to the United States in the immediate perspective, the establishment has denied that the Saudi ruler is being given a “pass”.

It is pretty obvious though, that the coveted International Visitor Program (IVP) will not be denied to the Saudi Arabian Crown Prince. Going by the terms of protocol, he may yet be treated as a state guest in America.-Reuter

 

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The root of the matter: shame - shamefulness and shamelessness

Pompeo and 27 others sanctioned for lying, cheating, stealing....

https://youtu.be/XjRYj6bq-1A

Sanction on Pompeo and 27 anti-China hawks is most gratifying to the people: State Council's HK & Macao Office

Mike Pompeo Photo: AFP

Ten sanctioned US politicians from the Trump eraInfographic: GT

The sanction of US former secretary of state Mike Pompeo and the other 27 anti-China hawks is most gratifying to the people, the Hong Kong and Macao Office of the State Council said on Thursday, saying that the office firmly supports the move.

"It is known to all that Pompeo had wantonly interfered with Hong Kong affairs, maliciously slandered the 'one country, two systems' practice, crazily incited and made sanctions, and severely violated international laws and the norms of international relations. He had severely damaged the China-US ties, destroyed the prosperity and stability of the Hong Kong region and he deserves the sanction," read the release of the office.

Soon after Joe Biden took the oath and became the new US president on January 20, the Chinese Foreign Ministry announced sanctions on 28 anti-China politicians in the US for "their selfish political interests, and prejudice and hatred against China, as well as showing no regard for the interests of the Chinese and American people."

The list includes Michael R. Pompeo, Peter K. Navarro, Robert C. O'Brien, David R. Stilwell, Matthew Pottinger, Alex M. Azar II, Keith J. Krach, and Kelly D. K. Craft of the Trump administration, as well as John R. Bolton and Stephen K. Bannon. These individuals and their immediate family members are prohibited from entering the mainland, Hong Kong and Macao of China. They, and any companies or institutions associated with them, are also restricted from doing business with China.

The Hong Kong and Macao office said in the Thursday release that during his years as the secretary of state, Pompeo "successfully" earned fame for his brazen cheating, lying and utter interference with other countries' affairs.

His lunatic political farces showed the international community just how the US hegemony oppresses and attacks China's development, exposing their hypocrisy, arrogance, selfishness and their maliciousness in boasting "democracy, freedom and human rights."

"Pompeo and others used their deeds to remind the international community to keep their eyes sharpened, and from this angle, he may have done one little good thing," read the release.

The Chinese people never believe evil can win. History has proven that any forces that want to interfere with China's internal affairs have failed and found themselves badly beaten. If someone still wants to take any chances in interfering with Hong Kong affairs or even inciting "color revolution" in the region, nothing but shameful failure will await them, according to the release.

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A look back at Trump’s four years 

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With the new President in the White House, the time to embrace the global community is now and not delay any longer. Washington will then be looked upon with great respect after four years of rule by one man, which was nothing but traumatic, chaotic and deceitful.( Pic shows Biden signing executive orders on first day of Presidency.)

AS we now welcome the era of Bidenomics over the next four years, one cannot help but to review the impact of the previous US president’s tenure which ended just three days ago.

One of Trump’s rallying cry was his call of making America great again. With that, the US embarked on a trade war with the rest of the world, in particular with China, to reduce the massive trade deficits that the US has been experiencing for umpteen years.

In addition, Trump also wanted to bring foreign manufacturers to the US on the assumption that this would reduce their import bill, attracting foreign direct investments as well as creating jobs for Americans.

The trade war saw US imposing tariffs on Chinese goods, and in retaliation, China too started to impose tariffs on US goods – effectively a tit-for-tat move by the two superpowers where effectively nobody wins.

The US-China trade war led to nervousness in markets, in particular during the 2018-2019 period, but the impact of the stand-off tapered off sometime about a year ago when both agreed to enter into the Phase 1 trade deal.

To recap, that trade truce entailed China agreeing to increase the import of American goods and services by at least US$200bil over the next two years. China, which purchased some US$130bil in total goods and US$56bil in services in 2017, was supposed to increase total imports by about US$162bil in total goods purchased and US$38bil in services over the two-year period.

In terms of breakdown for the year 2020 and 2021, China was to increase its imported goods by US$64bil in 2020 and US$98bil this year from the base line figure of 2017. In terms of services, the level of imports by China was expected to increase by about US$13bil last year and US$25bil this year.

Since the Phase 1 trade deal was inked about a year ago, how has the Chinese trade with the rest of the world and in particular the US performed in 2020? Overall, with the December 2020 trade data just released last week, China saw its total exports for the year rising by 3.6% while imports fell by 1.1% year-on-year (y-o-y).

This, of course, would lead to one thing – a widening trade surplus. In fact, China’s 2020 total trade surplus jumped by 27% to US$535bil – the highest in five years.

How about China’s trade with the US? Based on the data released, China’s trade surplus with the US rose by 7.1% to US$316.9bil and contrary to what president Trump intended to achieve with his tariff measures. Chinese exports to the US in 2020 increased by 7.9% to US$451.8bil while imports surged 9.8% y-o-y to US$134.9bil.

This definitely fell short of the targeted US$194bil total goods that was supposed to be imported by China in 2020 (US$130bil base line + US$64bil target). In terms of percentage, the shortfall was as much as 30%.

Based on the data from the US, trade with China up to November 2020 showed that US exports to China totalled some US$110bil while imports stood at US$393.6bil, giving rise to a trade deficit of US$283.6bil.

It is likely that for the month of December 2020, the US will add another US$30bil in deficit and thus bringing the 2020 total trade deficit with China to around US$314bil. Total exports for the year will likely come in at about US$125bil, up 15.8% y-o-y; while imports are expected to come in 3% lower at US$439bil.

Compared with the 2018 import value, US imports from China effectively would have dropped by about US$102bil but exports to China have increased by just 2.5% from the 2018 level of US$122bil.

In essence, while the US bought 19% less goods from China, what it sold to Beijing was barely any higher. In addition, while the US trade deficit with China may have improved by about US$30bil y-o-y in 2020, the Chinese trade surplus with the rest of the world is significantly higher.

What does this mean for Phase 1 Trade Deal?

With a shortfall of some US$70bil (based on US data) in 2020 and on the assumption that China is to import an additional amount of US$98bil this year to meet the target of Phase 1 trade deal, China would need to import as much as US$298bil worth of goods from the US this year!

This is derived after taking into consideration the base line of US$130bil in 2017, adding the US$70bil shortfall in 2020 and topping it up with the pledged US$98bil increase. Indeed, it is highly unlikely that China would be able to meet this target, which is more than doubled what it imported from the US last year.

Effectively, Phase 1 trade deal is dead in the water. Trump’s strategy can be said to have failed and China in effect has emerged as a clear winner in the trade war. What is now left to be seen is what will Bidenomics bring to the table as far as the trade war is concerned.

Will the new President soften his approach towards China? Will it be status quo or will Biden continue with Trump’s hard approach in dealing with China? After all, Janet Yellen, the treasury secretary nominee was quoted as saying that the US is prepared to take on China’s “abusive” trade and economic practices.

However, in the interest of globalisation and ease of movement of goods and services, tariffs effectively serve no purpose, especially to consumers as it actually only adds to the cost of goods purchased as the cost of tariff is passed on to the end buyers. Tariff is not a tool to restrict movement of goods or services. Instead, nations should strive to make themselves more competitive.

With the new President in the White House, the time to embrace the global community is now and not delay any longer. Washington will then be looked upon with great respect after four years of rule by one man, which was nothing but traumatic, chaotic and deceitful.

By Pankaj C. Kumar who is a long-time investment analyst. Views expressed here are the writer’s own.

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Trump and the yellowing of white privilege

Whether he returns to power or not, the US president and his ilk have ruined America and curdled how such privilege is viewed.

 Battling Americans: South Koreans watching a news programme on the Trump (right) and Biden battle for the US presidency. — AP

 

 AS you read this, Americans are on tenterhooks as they await the results of their most contentious presidential election in decades.

And the rest of the world waits with them.

Like many non-Americans, I have been consumed by what is happening in that country and closely followed first the race for the Democratic presidential nomination and then the campaigns of the final two candidates, Donald Trump and Joe Biden.

Trump must be defeated but, sadly, too many Americans, the so-called Republicans and conservatives, remain steadfast to him, having fallen for his fabrications and misinformation on just about everything, which proves that if a lie is repeated often enough, people will believe it.

Still, we hope enough right-minded Americans will vote him out and from the huge, record-breaking numbers of early voters, it appears they are determined to save their nation from further damage by this narcissistic, corrupt and immoral president.

How strange that America today feels like Malaysia circa 2018. The desperation and the grassroots movements to oust Trump recall Malaysians’ own struggle and determination to change things in the last general election.

Trump has become the unsavoury poster boy for white supremacists who believe white privilege is their God-given right.

I used to look up to the white man. As a baby boomer, my generation studied British, American and European history and practically nothing of the past of neighbouring countries. Communism was our great enemy in the 1960s and 1970s which was probably why we were barely taught Chinese history.

Western entertainment dominated our TV and cinema screens, our radio stations and record stores. Our idols were white singers and actors. The only black actor we knew was Sidney Poitier.

And so my generation grew up subconsciously believing that white people were superior and their way of life desirable.

As colonial masters of many parts of Africa and Asia, the whites came to lift the brown and yellow natives from backwardness and ignorance for God and king. Or so they projected themselves.

Western colonialism was pure exploitation for the most part but it was tempered by genuinely good-hearted people who came as teachers and missionaries (a prime example is how Australian missionaries saved the Lun Bawang orang asal in Sarawak from self-destruction in the 1930s).

We so-called people of colour put the so-called whites on pedestals, treating them with deference and respect. We didn’t put a name to it then but now it’s widely referred to as white privilege.

While white privilege in the United States is greatly manifested as racism and extreme prejudice and ill-treatment of black and, increasingly, Hispanic people, in other parts of the non-white world, it was simply the vestigial awe and deference left over from the colonial era and dominance of the West in the previous century.

For example, a common complaint a decade or two ago was how white passengers on Asian airlines were treated better than other races.

My own pedestal on which I had placed white people only started to wobble during my first trip to Britain in the early 1980s when I saw, to my huge surprise, white people who were homeless or doing menial tasks like sweeping the streets of London.

But by the late 1970s, change was coming from the East, namely Japan. Among Asians, the Japanese were the closest to the whites in terms of progress and wealth. What’s more, they were (and still are) so polite!

The Japanese, who had built a reputation for quality electrical products and cars, were also gaining world attention as sought-after tourists and art collectors with great spending power.

A friend who travels extensively recalls how people in Africa would greet Asian-looking people with “Konnichiwa” in the 1980s and 1990s.

Two decades into the 21st century, white influence has been steadily eroded by East Asia.

The Japanese may have started it but they are now joined, and somewhat eclipsed, by the Chinese and South Koreans.

My well-travelled friend tells me Africans now greet East Asians with “Ni hao” which is not surprising since Chinese tourists made 149 million overseas trips in 2018, with total spending amounting to US$130bil (RM540.4bil).

Many countries in Africa and Asia are China-friendly, not just because of tourism but because Beijing has been investing in them for decades.

In an op-ed for Aljazeera.com titled, Why Africa loves China, Dr Mehari Taddele Maru argues that, contrary to what the West believes, Africans do not see themselves as victims of Chinese economic exploitation. He says Africans are well aware of the shortcomings of Chinese assistance and business in Africa but it is China that is a preferred partner for Africa because “China’s unconditional cooperation has allowed African governments to enjoy access to finance, expertise and development aid”.

The China Africa Research Initiative at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, also reports that despite Western governments’ claims that China’s lending to Africa was creating debt threats, it did “not see China attempting to take advantage of countries in debt distress”.

“There were no ‘asset seizures’ in the 16 restructuring cases that we found. We have not yet seen cases in Africa where Chinese banks or companies have sued sovereign governments or exercised the option for international arbitration standard in Chinese loan contracts, ” the study noted.

And then there is South Korea which has become a driving force with its technological prowess and tremendously influential K-pop culture.

Its goods, from cars and washing machines to mobile phones, are widely accepted as affordable yet high-quality products.

Seoul’s effective handling of the Covid-19 pandemic won global respect and even its coronavirus test kits and personal protective equipment are deemed to be more reliable and of higher quality.

Both China and South Korea have learned from Hollywood the massive influence of soft power, that is, the use of popular culture and entertainment to build their brand and fuel national pride.

If America gave us Armageddon, Saving Private Ryan and Sully: The Miracle on the Hudson, China now has The Wandering Earth, The Eight Hundred and The Captain (which is also based on a real incident involving Sichuan Airlines Flight 8633).

And as I have written several times, K-pop culture has won millions of devotees around the world, and the fan clubs, especially that of the group BTS, have proven to be a force to be reckoned with.

Trump himself is a major contributor to the rapid erosion of respect for white America. He is the ugliest face of white racism, privilege and entitlement. With his egging, his supporters show how stupid, ill-informed and racist they really are in their response to the pandemic and many other issues and that has reflected so badly on the nation itself.

Asians could only shake our heads in amazement at how Americans and people in Europe and Australia fought against wearing masks to reduce Covid-19 infections in the name of human rights and democracy. How daft is that?

Make no mistake: I still have much affection, admiration and gratitude for the Western books, movies, music and other educational and entertainment fodder I grew up with and that helped shape me into what I am today.

So too the many inventions and technologies that have made our lives easier, safer and more convenient.

But I am no longer in thrall of the two Ws – Western and white.

White people may have ruled the world in the previous century and claimed their white privilege. But no more.

No matter how hard he has tried to denigrate and blame China for America’s ills and woes, Trump and his ilk cannot stop white privilege and supremacy in the 21st century from slowly but surely turning yellow. Still, I prefer not to call it yellow privilege because Asians are generally more humble. Shall we just say yellow is the new black?

The views expressed here are entirely the writer’s own.

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