What Trump's Election Means for China

US President-elect Donald Trump speaks at election night rally in Manhattan, New York, US, November 9, 2016. [Photo/Agencies]

Battlegrounds have been drawn this past week in the United States' historic election, and POTUS 2017 will, for the first time since Dwight Eisenhower, go to a man who has never before held public office as an elected official.

With pretty much all of heartland America and the South going to president-elect Donald Trump, only the West coast and Northeast really showed any favor towards a Clinton administration. Predicted to win in most polls prior to the election, most Liberals underestimated just how disenfranchised the working class of America had become with what they saw as a corrupt political and economic establishment that had sold them out over the past two decades.

With the election of Trump, Americans have made it clear that they want factories to stay in the US, a wall built to separate them from Mexico, a tougher government on Islamic extremism and immigration, and public works projects to rebuild their outdated infrastructure. Liberals and the American left have been protesting ever since Trump's declared victory, with California even threatening to 'Calexit'. However, while these bleeding-heart liberals anchored by CNN continue to cry fowl, they should settle down and think about what the possibilities are now that the political establishment is undergoing a real watershed from someone truly outside politics. Indeed, a sea change has been demanded by people fed up with the Clinton and Bush oligarchies, and eight years of Obama not really delivering on the hope on which his presidency was founded.

Now, while some of Trump's most provocative comments have come at the hands of Mexico and China over trade, that does not mean the leadership in China should be mimicking the histrionics of Hillary's voting base. Trump is well known for calling China out on a perceived trade imbalance and the contention that China manipulates its currency to create an off-level playing field with the United States. That being said, the leadership in China should be glad that Trump won – and not Hillary.

To begin, Trump's comments are just that – comments. And it is pretty evident after his victory speech and recent demeanor that Trump the president will be a much cooler head than Trump the political candidate. The most probable outcome is that jobs and factories in China with American multinationals will stay in China. Trump, however, will make it very difficult for any new companies to jump ship and move their factories to China or Mexico during his administration.

Secondly, Trump is a businessman first and foremost and understands how interdependent both the USA and China are when it comes to international trade, and will not do anything drastic to change that. Any major hit to China's economy would be felt in America is well, and that could be a disaster for both countries. Ergo, slapping high tariffs on future incoming Chinese goods is improbable.

Third is the Russia card. Putin and Trump have already shown a willingness to work together (which never would have been on the table with Hillary), and as such, Putin will predictably have leverage with Trump over dealings with China. If Trump were to sour China, he would also seriously risk souring Russia, which is not a likely scenario given the current climate between the two leaders.

And last is the military. Most experts would agree that Hillary would have been much more Hawkish on China in regards to the South China Sea and any other geopolitical hot buttons that could have seen confrontation. Trump has talked tough when it comes to IS and the Middle East, but will most likely not want to exacerbate any current sabre rattling in East Asia. For that, China should be relieved they won't have to deal with Hillary.

Alas, the seemingly never-ending election is finally over, which is something I think should make everyone in America, and those who follow politics, relieved. And in the case of China, and all those who live here, we should be more at ease with Donald Trump as the future president of the United States.

The author is a freelance Writer and China Daily Contributor.

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and don't represent views of China Daily website.