Almost no cargo ships headed to the US from the previously busy Chinese ports of Shanghai and Guangdong
A toy factory specialising in solar powered plastic gadgets in Yiwu, China’s eastern Zhejiang province. Pic/AFP
Key Chinese trade hubs are beginning to show early signs of disruption as the US-China tariff war intensifies, according to news reports. Major export provinces and shipping ports, including Shanghai and Guangdong, have seen a sharp decline in activity.
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By Thursday, “almost no cargo ships were headed to the US and export factories in key provinces that support China’s export industry had come to a standstill”. Shipping containers that missed the April 9 deadline for US-bound vessels are now stacked high at these ports. In Zhejiang and Guangdong—the provinces contributing the most to China’s exports in 2024—factory operations have been brought to a halt. Warehouses are filled with products initially destined for the US.
The dispute began on February 4 when Trump imposed a 10 per cent tariff on China, citing the country’s alleged involvement in trafficking fentanyl. China responded by imposing a 15 per cent tariff on US coal and liquefied natural gas, and a 10 per cent tariff on crude oil, large automobiles, and agricultural machinery. Trump later increased the tariffs on Chinese goods by another 10 per cent, raising the total to 20 per cent, triggering the ongoing tit-for-tat between the two global powers.
‘Tariffs a major test’
The US’ high tariffs on China will be a major test for President Xi Jinping amid the economic slowdown while the Trump administration’s levies on Beijing could be far more effective if the US takes allies along, former US ambassador to China Nicholas Burns has said.
“I don’t think the Chinese government wants to have a trade war. They want a deal,” said Burns, the US Ambassador to Beijing from 2022 to early this year. He also said Trump should pair with US allies to make the trade war on China more effective.
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