Even before Donald Trump takes office on Monday, trade tensions between the world’s biggest economies are already heating up.

On the eve of Donald Trump’s White House return, the Chinese government announced that last year it recorded a trade surplus of almost $1 trillion, a third of which was with the US.

Correcting the major imbalances in the global economy will require collaborative international action. If he wants results, Trump will need to rein in his penchant to go it alone.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping discussed issues including TikTok, trade and Taiwan in a phone call on Friday, just days before Trump takes office again promising tariffs that could ratchet up tensions between the world's two biggest economies.

Bloomberg reporters answer questions about how Trump’s promises to raise tariffs on China could lead to a trade war with global consequences.