By David Brunnstrom, Simon Lewis and Alasdair Pal WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States, Australia, India and Japan recommitted to working together on Tuesday, after the first meeting of the China-focused "Quad" grouping's top diplomats since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.
Rubio's appointment as secretary of state has been seen as sign that Trump plans to maintain a hard line on China.
China is responding to Trump's energy-centric executive actions with a global diplomatic blitz. China courts the Middle East without push back from Washington.
New U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed China's "dangerous and destabilizing actions in the South China Sea" with his Philippine counterpart on Wednesday and underscored the "ironclad" U.S.
China Seeks Closer Relations With US Allies
China's expanding footprint in Latin America is expected to be high on the agenda when US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits Panama next week on his first overseas trip since taking office, according to observers.
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said that escalating tensions between the two countries could lead to catastrophic global consequences.
Chinese products will soon face a 10% tariff coming into the United States in a move that could ramp up conflict between the world’s two largest economies.
Whether it is over TikTok, fentanyl or trade, Beijing might welcome a compromise to buy time to address its ailing economy and bolster its position globally.
Two Iranian cargo vessels carrying an ingredient for missile propellant will sail from China to Iran in the next few weeks, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing intelligence from security officials in two Western countries.
In China, Apple’s second largest market, iPhone sales fell 18% in the December ending quarter, according to Bloomberg.
BANGKOK — World shares were mixed on Thursday after China rolled out more moves to try to boost its lagging stock markets by raising confidence that prices will rise. Germany’s DAX gained 0.2% to 21,300 and the CAC 40 in Paris edged 0.1% higher to 7,847.38. Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped less than 0.1% to 8,539.88.