Well, I'm not a member of the Chinese central committee, so I also just assume things. But the way I see the Chinese, there is nothing without a purpose what they do. Even more so when it comes to business.
In my view, there is not much that the US can do against China. The worst thing that could happen to the US is, if China actually does what Trump demands - stopping the export of good to the US. That would cause a instant shortage of all kinds of consumer goods and a hefty inflation. Lets face it, all the countries in the western world depend - thanks to globalisation - on the supply with chinese goods. It would take years to build up a inland production again, and after that everything would be much more expensive.
So the leverage we have on China is pretty limited.