Xi Jinping seeks to lead world trade as Donald Trump sticks to ‘America First’
Vietnam — Chinese President Xi Jinping laid out his country’s credentials as the new champion of world trade on Friday, calling globalisation an "irreversible historical trend", in comments that offered a contrast to the "America First" doctrine espoused by Donald Trump moments earlier. Speaking at the APEC summit in Vietnam, Xi conceded that the philosophy behind free trade needed to be repurposed to be "more open, more balanced, more equitable and more beneficial to all", but defended multinational trade deals, which he said helped poorer nations benefit from global commerce. "We should support the multilateral trading regime and practise open regionalism to allow developing members to benefit more from international trade and investment," he said in a speech punctuated by regular bouts of applause from delegates. The Chinese leader’s comments contrasted with remarks by the US president, who had spoken on the same stage moments earlier. Trump gave a spirited airing of his "America...
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