The global supply chain isn’t bilateral.
President Trump’s tug of war with China continues. Last week the latest round of talks between China and the U.S. kicked off. The United States is trying address the trade balance between China and the United States in a bilateral fashion. It seems that there isn’t really a bilateral supply chain, as much as the President wants it to be.
Just before this latest round of Sino-American negotiations kicked off, French President Emanuel Macron and China’s President Xi Jinping announced a thirty billion Euro deal—close to thirty-five billion U.S. dollars—for Airbus aircraft. Of the 300 aircraft included by China in the deal, 290 are the single aisle A320 configuration. The A320 happens to be the aircraft that competes directly with Boeing’s grounded 737 Max 8 configuration.
It seems that there isn’t really a bilateral supply chain, as much as the President wants it to be. In a not-so-subtle challenge to U.S. interests, Politico quotes President Xi saying, "a united and prosperous Europe corresponds to our vision of a multipolar world." American businesses with supply chains and logistics threads extending into China need to pay attention.
President Trump’s game of checkers with China has morphed into a game of chess with the world.
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