China’s export growth has gone far beyond the high-tech industries in the Western crosshairs, leaving Beijing at risk of a backlash from countries that have so far preferred to stay on the sidelines of the trade war.
The European Union is poised to impose tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles this week, the latest example of rising barriers to global trade. The US has already taken a similar step, and Canada could follow suit. Few other countries have raised this specific concern, as most do not have their own EV industries to protect.
But China’s surplus in industrial trade, which is near record levels, points to a much broader increase in exports. It includes not just green energy goods, but all kinds of products – from steel to animal feed – that are increasingly difficult to sell at home, where a real estate slump is slowing the economy.
