Adding his signature to yet another executive order, US President Donald Trump has extended China’s trade negotiating window for a further 90 days, giving the two sides until November to reach a deal.

The extension averts a return to the triple-digit tariff war instigated by Trump that effectively created a mutual trade embargo earlier this year before a truce was struck in May.

US President Donald Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping at their last face-to-face meeting, at the G20 summit in Osaka, Japan in 2019.Credit: AP

Allowing more time for trade talks to continue amid easing tensions is a good thing for businesses, global markets, and for those of us who value living in a world where two superpowers aren’t waging a dangerous game of economic Armageddon.

The 90-day reprieve has also added to speculation that Trump is clearing the path for a potential summit in China later this year, where he can close out the deal with President Xi Jinping himself against the backdrop of Beijing’s stately red-carpet opulence.

But Trump has alarmed the Republicans’ China hawks with a string of recent moves where he has swapped cudgel for carrot in what has been widely interpreted as an effort to sweeten the chances of a deal and a meeting with Xi. These include blocking the Taiwanese president’s plans to transit through the US on the way to South America, and cancelling........

© Brisbane Times