Nikkei Chinese Edition recently reported that U.S. imports from China during the period January to November, 2023, decreased by more than 20 percent compared with the same period in 2022. Although import data for December 2023 have not yet been released, it seems highly probably that U.S. imports from Mexico will surpass imports from China for the calendar year 2023.

There is a clear trend in the United States of “friend-shoring,” i.e. changing the source of imports from China to other countries who are more closely aligned with the U.S. This trend of relocating supply chains has been particularly rapid in categories of imports such as electronic products, previously highly dependent on imports from China. In terms of smartphones, imports from China decreased 10 percent year-over-year during the period from January to November. Meanwhile, electronic product imports from India expanded by a factor of five. For laptop computers, U.S. imports from China decreased by about 30 percent, while imports from Vietnam’s increased by a factor of four.

In 2023, U.S. imports from Europe and Southeast Asia increased, and imports from the European Union (EU) hit a new high during the period January to November, 2023. Although the import volume from ASEAN countries decreased year-over-year, this year’s imports from the ASEAN region were still the second highest in history, with the share of imports from ASEAN countries double that of 10 years ago.

In order to mitigate geopolitical risks, multinational corporations have widely adopted a “China + 1” strategy, diversifying their supply chains to avoid overreliance on China.

Source: Nikkei Chinese, January 10, 2024
https://cn.nikkei.com/politicsaeconomy/investtrade/54529-2024-01-10-09-54-58.html?start=0

On December 11, 2023, U.S. President Biden issued “A Proclamation on Suspension of Entry as Immigrants and Nonimmigrants of Persons Enabling Corruption.” On January 7th, Chinese state media outlet China Discipline Inspection and Monitoring News criticized this proclamation as U.S. “hypocrisy” and “double standards” on anti-corruption efforts. Its article reported that 20 of China’s most wanted fugitives are currently hiding in the U.S.

The article states that, in recent years, the U.S. has expanded the concept of national security “to justify long-arm jurisdiction and suppress its rivals, while perpetuating its own hegemony.” The report argues that U.S. anti-corruption efforts highlight hypocrisy and hegemonic goals, as well as expose the U.S. as “the world’s largest safe haven for corruption assets and fugitives.”

Specifically, the article claims that the U.S. hosts the highest concentration of persons from developing countries who are suspected of corruption and white-collar crimes. Of the “100-Person Red Notice List” published by the Chinese Interpol office, 20 out of the 38 fugitives who have not yet been brought to justice in China are said to be hiding in the U.S. (The “100-Person Red Notice List” refers to 100 Chinese former state officials who were suspected of corruption and became fugitives targeted for pursuit by Chinese authorities.)

Some Chinese netizens questioned why the CCP’s state media is criticizing the new U.S. entry ban, which ostensibly would make life harder for corrupt individuals fleeing from Chinese authorities. Some netizens speculated that corrupt people [within the CCP] and their families are angry that they can no longer travel to or study in the U.S. One netizen remarked that many families of corrupt Chinese officials will now have to return to China.

Sources:
Central News Agency (Taiwan), January 8, 2024
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202401080123.aspx

The White House (US), December 11, 2023
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2023/12/11/a-proclamation-on-suspension-of-entry-as-immigrants-and-nonimmigrants-of-persons-enabling-corruption/