The President's Daily Brief
May 5th, 2025: China’s Silent Retreat: Beijing Backpedals On U.S. Tariffs & U.S. Approves Ukraine F-16 Deal
Mon, 05 May 2025
In this episode of The President's Daily Brief: China quietly exempts over $40 billion worth of U.S. goods from tariffs, a major shift in its trade war strategy as economic strain mounts. A Houthi missile lands near Israel’s Ben Gurion airport, marking one of the group’s boldest strikes to date. The Trump administration deepens support for Ukraine with a $310 million F-16 training and support package. And in today’s Back of the Brief—UK counter-terror police arrest five Iranian nationals suspected of plotting an attack on British soil. To listen to the show ad-free, become a premium member of The President’s Daily Brief by visiting PDBPremium.com. Please remember to subscribe if you enjoyed this episode of The President's Daily Brief. YouTube: youtube.com/@presidentsdailybrief Birch Gold: Text PDB to 989898 and get your free info kit on gold TriTails Premium Beef: Visit https://TryBeef.com/PDB for 2 free Flat Iron steaks with your first box over $250True Classic: Upgrade your wardrobe and save on @trueclassic at trueclassic.com/PDB ! #trueclassicpod. Please review the “AD” disclosure requirements based on FTC legal regulations here: http://ftc.gov/influencers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Chapter 1: What is China's new strategy in the trade war with the U.S.?
It's Monday, the 5th of May. Welcome to the President's Daily Brief. I'm Mike Baker, your eyes and ears on the world stage. All right, let's get briefed. We'll start things off today in Beijing, where new reporting reveals the true scale of China's quiet backtrack in the trade war with the US. Over $40 billion in American goods are now exempt from tariffs.
Mm-hmm, clear evidence that Beijing's, well, feeling the squeeze. Later in the show, a missile launched by Yemen's Houthi rebels lands near Israel's Ben-Gurion airport, the most sensitive target hit since the group began its campaign against the Jewish state.
Plus, in the latest sign of growing cooperation between the Trump administration and Kyiv, the US has now approved a $310 million package to support Ukraine's F-16 program. And in today's back of the brief, British authorities arrest five Iranian nationals in a counter-terror operation, accusing them of plotting a terror attack on UK soil. But first, today's PDB Spotlight.
Last week, we reported that the communist regime in Beijing had created a secret whitelist of U.S.-made products, exempting them from China's 125% tariffs, retaliatory tariffs, might I add, and quietly notifying companies of this shift in policy. Now, we're getting more clarity on the scale of those exemptions and what they reveal about the mounting strain on China's economy.
According to new reporting from Bloomberg, China has already started allowing businesses to import U.S. goods from a list of 131 products without paying the steep tariffs. The estimated value of these exempted goods is roughly $40 billion. To put that in perspective, that's nearly a quarter of all Chinese imports from the U.S. this year. So, this is not a minor tweak to China's trade policies.
The exemptions cover a wide range of goods, from pharmaceuticals and industrial chemicals to aircraft leasing and critical inputs for electronic manufacturing. Analysts now believe this move was a deliberate mirror of U.S. exemptions on certain Chinese products rather than a goodwill gesture. Beijing is deliberately keeping the move quiet, likely to avoid the appearance of backing down.
The list has not been published and Chinese officials still haven't publicly acknowledged the exemptions. Still, at least half a dozen companies have already taken advantage, importing U.S. goods tariff-free in recent days. Behind the scenes, Chinese officials reportedly began reaching out to foreign companies in early April, asking them to identify which U.S.
imports were essential and difficult to replace. That feedback helped shape the whitelist, which Bloomberg says will be continuously updated based on domestic needs and supply pressures. A notable example is ethane. It's a type of natural gas used to make plastic. The US is the world's top supplier, and China doesn't have an easy alternative.
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Chapter 2: What are the economic impacts of China's tariff exemptions?
Two major Chinese plastic manufacturers have already been granted exemptions so that they can keep buying ethane from the US. It's a clear reminder that as reliant as the US is on China for manufacturing, China still depends on the US for key materials, and its retaliatory tariffs are starting to do more harm than good at home. and the damage is piling up.
Factory activity in China has now slipped into its sharpest contraction since late 2023. Major global banks, including Goldman Sachs and UBS, have cut China's full-year growth forecast to around 4%, well below Beijing's official target.
This all might be why, on Thursday of last week, the Chinese Commerce Ministry publicly stated it's now open to resuming trade talks with the U.S., following several recent outreach attempts from American officials. But Beijing also made clear that any negotiation would require the U.S.
to first remove all unilateral tariffs, calling them a sign of bad faith that, quote, further compromise mutual trust, end quote. Bottom line, China is feeling the squeeze. Quiet exemptions, hidden lists, and economic back channels all point to a regime that wants to avoid a collapse in critical sectors, while, of course, trying not to lose face in a very public trade war.
All right, coming up after the break, a Houthi missile lands near Israel's main airport in one of the group's boldest strikes yet. And the Trump administration deepens its military support for Ukraine with a $310 million F-16 aid package. I'll be right back. Hey, Mike Baker here.
Well, you know all about the tariffs probably by now and the trade wars, and I suspect you also know that all of that has thrown the global economy into some chaos. Potential widespread inflation tied to massive supply chain disruptions, well, it's weighing heavily on everybody. But I'm here to tell you that there's a silver and a gold lining that I think a lot of people have missed.
And by that, what I mean is President Trump specifically exempted gold and silver bullion from the sweeping tariffs. Now, while the new policies are certainly triggering significant financial chaos, the administration preserved your ability to diversify into precious metals.
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Chapter 3: How are recent geopolitical tensions affecting Israel?
It marked the first successful Houthi hit on major Israeli civilian infrastructure since the terror group began launching missiles in what it describes as support for Hamas amid the war in Gaza. While dozens of previous projectiles were intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome, this one got through. It's a glaring lapse in what's considered one of the world's most sophisticated air defense systems.
The Israeli Air Force said it's investigating how that happened. Defense officials have acknowledged that the breach was both rare and deeply concerning. On the ground, a senior police commander surveyed the blast site, pointing reporters to a crater, quote, tens of meters wide and deep in a parking area near the terminal.
He said, quote, there was no significant damage, though the psychological impact was unmistakable. Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a blunt warning later that day, stating, quote, anyone who hits us, we will hit them seven times stronger. Netanyahu convened its defense cabinet and top military leaders Sunday afternoon to discuss potential retaliatory options.
The timing of the attack is no coincidence. The strike comes as the U.S. continues hammering Houthi positions in Yemen, part of a broader effort to dismantle the Iran-backed group's missile and drone capabilities, following a months-long campaign of harassment targeting Red Sea shipping. As we've been reporting here on the PDB, British forces joined those operations just last week.
Now, with the Houthis hitting an airport just outside Tel Aviv, Israel appears poised to ramp up its own operations. All right, switching to the Ukraine-Russia conflict. The Trump administration is doubling down on military aid to Ukraine, greenlighting up to $310 million in F-16 training and support services.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency confirmed the proposed sale over the weekend, outlining a package that includes aircraft upgrades, spare parts, and extensive instruction for Ukrainian pilots and maintenance crews. Congressional approval is still required before the deal is finalized.
The move follows the March delivery of F-16s to Ukraine, with another shipment slated for later this spring. It's part of a broader, multinational effort to modernize Ukraine's air force. Belgium, Denmark, and Norway are among the NATO allies contributing jets and training.
The New York Times also reports that a Patriot air defense system, currently stationed in Israel, will be transferred to Ukraine after refurbishment. Additional Patriot systems from Germany and Greece are under discussion.
Zelensky, meanwhile, told CBS News that Ukraine is prepared to purchase 10 Patriot systems for a total of approximately $15 billion, saying, quote, we will find the money and pay for everything. Trump initially dismissed Zelensky's plea, accusing him of, quote, always looking to purchase missiles and warning that new shipments would only prolong the war.
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Chapter 4: What is the current status of U.S. military support for Ukraine?
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In today's Back of the Brief, British counterterrorism officers arrested five men, four of them Iranian nationals, in one of the UK's most sweeping security operations in recent memory over an alleged Islamic regime-linked plot to carry out an attack on UK soil. The suspects were detained Saturday under the Terrorism Act on suspicion of preparing an attack.
Authorities say the plot targeted a single undisclosed location in the UK. Now, the site has not been named, quote, for operational reasons, but officials confirmed it is now under heightened protection and receiving, quote, advice and support from authorities.
The raids, coordinated across London, Swindon in Western England, and Greater Manchester, unfolded with the deployment of heavily armed units and were followed by sweeping property searches.
None of the five men have been charged yet, but all remain in custody as questioning continues The nationality of the fifth man is still being determined At one home in Greater Manchester, forensic teams were seen scouring the property after one suspect was taken into custody
A neighbor told Sky News that he, quote, heard a massive bang before 20 or 30 police with guns stormed the house to later drag a man out. Commander Dominique Murphy of the Metropolitan Police's Counterterrorism Command said the investigation remains active and that authorities are still assessing, quote, whether there may be any further risk to the public. But that wasn't the end of it.
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