GUANGZHOU, April 22 -- Labourers sweated as they wheeled bags of clothes, shoes and accessories to a sprawling wholesale market in southern China, where shop owners hoped an upcoming visit by Donald Trump would see an easing of tariffs hitting their exports.

Factories in Guangdong province, China's production heartland, have borne the brunt of the president's mercurial policies and a blistering trade war that saw US levies on their goods reach an eyewatering 145 percent for many products.

The tit-for-tat escalation cooled off after Trump and Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping agreed to a one-year truce in October, but manufacturers at the bustling Guangdong market told AFP that US orders had dwindled.

"It's very clear - American customers ...