Time for Trump to heed advice, 'to jaw-jaw is better than to war-war'

The talks between China and the United States in Washington this week prompted sighs of relief despite the fact that they are unlikely to put an end to the trade tensions between the two countries.

The timing is not that great because the US imposed punitive tariffs on another $16 billion of Chinese goods on Thursday, and China retaliated dollar-for-dollar with tariffs on US imports on the same day. That is in addition to the 25 percent tariffs on $34 billion of goods the two countries imposed on each other on July 6.

The timing also is not ideal because with the approaching midterm election, US President Donald Trump will continue to play politics by "getting tough on China" and blaming China for his country's economic woes. This is especially true when Democrats are likely to gain an upper hand in many Congressional districts now held by Republicans.