China can't tank imports until they finish pivoting to their own internal, consumptive middle class. And probably not even then.
The plan the international community hoped for is actually somewhat working, the timeline for China's giant population to metabolize it was just wrong.
Large Chinese middle class = power = political risk to disrupting the economy = incentive not to rock the international trade boat's status quo.
The CCP is already seeing with the anger over zero-COVID that {middle class life} >> {good of the Party} for most of the population.
Unfortunately, China probably also learned from the USSR that the entire charade only collapses when you blink and refrain from using the military to crush civilian dissent. Which doesn't bode well for Chinese citizens...
>"Unfortunately, China probably also learned from the USSR that the entire charade only collapses when you blink and refrain from using the military to crush civilian dissent."
Baloney. USSR did not crush because of "civilian dissent". All the changes were driven from the top.
Berlin Wall did not cause the collapse of the USSR, it was one of the results of generally declining empire and change of it policies that again came from the top. Gorby and Reagan had decided to be "friends"
The plan the international community hoped for is actually somewhat working, the timeline for China's giant population to metabolize it was just wrong.
Large Chinese middle class = power = political risk to disrupting the economy = incentive not to rock the international trade boat's status quo.
The CCP is already seeing with the anger over zero-COVID that {middle class life} >> {good of the Party} for most of the population.
Unfortunately, China probably also learned from the USSR that the entire charade only collapses when you blink and refrain from using the military to crush civilian dissent. Which doesn't bode well for Chinese citizens...