How to decouple from China sensibly

On international trade, President Donald Trump is right about China. That country has indeed “looted” the United States with unfair trade practices. Trump is also right that the U.S. economy should be decoupled from the Chinese economy. But Trump is wrong that the U.S. should stop trading with China today.

The key problem with an immediate full stop to trade is that the U.S. is heavily dependent on China for essential economic inputs into our economy. If China were to order its companies to stop exporting various goods to the U.S., then the U.S. economy would be gravely damaged. By contrast, the Chinese economy and its people could adapt if U.S. exports to China ceased.