Trump, Biden, and China: What the 2024 election means for China-US relations

    China’s big election is right around the corner. Otherwise known as the US Presidential election, it’s all but guaranteed to be a Trump-Biden rematch, ensuring that China will be dealing with a familiar face in the White House come next January. The obvious question: Who does Beijing prefer? The short answer: Neither. Both options are fraught with danger. Biden’s relatively

    Read it

    Gaming out China’s next export controls on critical minerals 

    China and the West could be on the precipice of a critical minerals trade war. The risk of losing access to key Chinese mineral exports has weighed on companies and governments worldwide since July 2023, when China launched its first tit-for-tat mineral export restrictions on gallium and germanium in response to US-led tech controls. In the months since, China has

    Read it

    Defusing local government debt risks: What’s in the Politburo’s basket? 

    Senior officials are finally getting serious about addressing the country’s longstanding local government debt challenges.  The turning point: On July 24, the Politburo met for its quarterly discussion of the Chinese economy. In the readout of the meeting, the Politburo said it would soon roll out a “basket of measures” to defuse risks arising from local government debt.  A coordinated effort

    Read it

    A new day, a new platform

    When Trivium was first launched in 2017, it was more of a social club for China analysts than a business. Couple of us sat in a tiny office talking shop, writing a free newsletter that no one was reading, and considering the merits of maybe, you know, getting some paying clients. Sometimes it still baffles us that, seven years later,

    Read it