Trump’s negotiation position diminishes as Albo sits him out

But China’s pull for many of its neighbours has been made stronger by the erratic policies of the Trump Administration, real uncertainties about where the US is going, and the ever-changing demands on tariff levels, with seemingly arbitrary rate-fixing, sometimes determined by spite or a misunderstanding of the effect and impact of trade imbalances. Australia has had much the same experience, even as we seem to have fared much better than most. Trump is continuing to muse about punitive rates on pharmaceuticals, on steel production and on meat imports. Trump has now been in power for six months. It has…