Trump's top economic advisor says the Chinese economy is 'crumbling' even though it continues to grow despite the trade war

AP Photo/Susan Walsh

White House National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow speaks to reporters in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019

• President Donald Trump's top economic advisor Larry Kudlow claimed the Chinese economy is not as strong as it may seem on the surface and is "crumbling" under the weight of the ongoing US-China trade war, even as it grew 6.2% in the last quarter.
• During a Tuesday morning interview on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street," Kudlow said the Chinese economy is not prepared to bear the brunt of the US-China trade war and is on the verge of collapse.
• "The Chinese economy is crumbling. It's just not the powerhouse it was 20 years ago," Kudlow said.
• He also defended the tariffs Trump has slapped onto China, which now cover $250 billion of Chinese goods, and said they are bearing more of its costs.
• But the trade war is impacting the American economy as well, particularly the agricultural sector. Dairy farmers have lost $2.3 billion in revenue since the trade wars began, according to the Washington Post.
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President Donald Trump's top economic advisor Larry Kudlow claimed the Chinese economy is not as strong as it may seem on the surface and is "crumbling" under the weight of the ongoing US-China trade war, even as it grew 6.2 percent in the last quarter.

During a Tuesday morning interview on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street," Kudlow said the Chinese economy is not prepared to bear the brunt of the US-China trade war and its on the verge of collapse.

"The Chinese economy is crumbling. It's just not the powerhouse it was 20 years ago," Kudlow said.

He also defended the tariffs Trump has slapped onto China, which now covers $250 billion of Chinese goods, and argued they are bearing more of its costs.

"The economic burden of these tariffs is falling almost 100% on China," Kudlow said. He also said its economy is getting "hurt significantly."

Read more: Trump suggests the trade war with China could last until 2020 after series of dramatic escalations

Kudlow, the director of the National Economic Council, held out the possibility of an agreement between the world's two largest economies, characterizing Trump's position as flexible.

"The president has said, you know, if you make a good deal or good progress on a deal, maybe he'll be flexible on the tariffs," Kudlow said. "He's open to it, that's really the key point."

China reported last month that its economy grew by 6.2% in the second quarter. It was a drop from 6.4% in the first quarter of the year, and it marked the slowest growth rate of its economy in the last 27 years. Economic experts said the trade war was a key factor dampening its growth.

But the trade war is impacting the American economy as well, particularly the agricultural sector. Dairy farmers have lost $2.3 billion in revenue since the trade wars began, according to the Washington Post.

Read more: Trump accuses China of a 'major violation' after its currency breaches a key level

Trump announced on Monday he would impose another round of tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese goods in September. It rattled global financial markets, and US stocks experienced their worst daily losses of 2019.

Economic tensions between the US and China continued to escalate when the US designated China as a currency manipulator after it devalued its currency, making its goods cheaper to sell overseas and increasing competition with American exporters. China also announced it suspend its purchases of American agricultural products.