Trump 2.0 to ‘disrupt’ US-China business, analysts say, as law firm shuts Beijing office
New York-based Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison plans to close its Beijing office at the end of the year
A US corporate law firm with a more than 40-year footprint in China plans to close its Beijing office at the end of the year, accentuating a half a decade of economic strife between the world’s two largest economies.
A spokeswoman for the New York-based Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, known for merger and acquisition cases plus other corporate law work, said it would continue its Asia business through offices in Hong Kong and Tokyo.
The company – known as Paul, Weiss for short – opened its Beijing office in 1981 to become one of the first foreign practices with an office in mainland China.
Foreign multinational clients have pulled back from China on account of trade and tech disputes that arose during US president-elect Donald Trump’s first term in the White House between 2017-21, analysts said.
During his campaign this year, Trump has since pledged tariffs of up to 60 per cent on Chinese goods after he returns to office next month.
