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The Trade of The United States of America (2019)


1. US Trade with Major Countries in 2019


Below table 2's source is "The China Cu
stom", and differnt from the table1,figures of US "Census Basia", US Departmen of Commerce.

USA had recorded huge amount of trade deficit with China, every year.
 This is the cause why American has started the trade war against China. The American economy has been declining for several decades, because the economic philosophy of 'globalization'. USA believed it should keep within the border, the most competitive economic sectors, for instance, finanse, airspace, car, computor and IT. USA gave up steel industry, electronics , clothing, footware etc.

It’s a central feature of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign ; “make America great again”, But Trump has been not successful.
Some light industries came back a little, and workers of manufacturing industries increased a little, but unemplayment ratio decreased to 3.5%, at the end of 2019.
Although Trump often seems disconnected from reality, on this issue he has a point. In 2019, USA decreased import and export very little. The situation has not getting better.

The btrade war between USA and China is getting fierce.USA imported from China,-16.2%. Because USA immposed hevy tax to China. China also decreased import from USA -10.9%.

The imports from China should be included Honglong, because Hongkong has been eepted heavy duty from USA, so Chines companies tried to eexport to USA via Hong Kong, but number is so samll, only 5,279 million $ from Hong Kong. But when we use the Chinese Statistics of Trade, Chinese governmennt uses the direct export from China only, so its number is compatatively small.

USA shifted import from China to other countries, for instance from Europe and ASEAN.and India.


Table 1 US trade with majr countries (million$,%) depending upon US statistics.

2005 2010 2016 2017 2018 2019 18/17 19/18
World Ttl Export 913,016 1,271,972 1,468,552 1,531,835 1,652,113 1,633,066 7.9 -1.2
Import 1,695,820 1,938,950 2,207,195 2,358,789 2,561,667 2,519,049 8.6 -1.7
Balance -782,804 -666,978 -738,643 -826,954 -909,554 -885,983 10.0 -2.6
Japn Export 54,817 61,472 63,811 68,298 75,958 75,321 11.2 -0.8
Import 140,388 122,929 134,138 138,209 144,410 145,534 4.5 0.8
Balance -85,571 -61,457 -70,327 -69,911 -68,452 -70,213 -2.1 2.6
China Export 41,874 93,059 115,991 130,280 120,829 107,719 -7.3 -10.9
Import 244,699 366,126 463,089 506,038 540,431 452,700 6.8 -16.2
Balance -202,825 -273,067 -347,098 -375,758 -419,602 -344,981 11.7 -17.8
Hong Kong Export 16,866 27,531 35,545 40,630 38,228 31,648 -5.9 -17.2
Import 9,692 4,696 7,783 7,775 6,805 5,279 -12.5 -22.4
Balance 7,174 22,835 27,762 32,855 31,423 26,369 -4.4 -16.1
China+HK Export 58,740 120,590 151,536 170,910 159,057 139,367 -6.9 -12.4
Import 254,391 370,822 470,872 513,813 547,236 457,979 6.5 -16.3
Balance -319,517 -342,903 -388,179 -318612 13.2 -100.0
Korea Export 28,639 40,082 42,914 49,283 57,617 57,887 16.9 0.5
Import 44,217 49,762 70,389 71,810 75,011 78,089 4.5 4.1
Balance -15,578 -9,680 -27,475 -22,527 -17,394 -20,202 -22.8 16.1
Taiwan Export 22,794 26,975 26,546 26,294 31,168 31,836 18.5 2.1
Import 35,350 36,016 39,198 42,442 45,750 54,298 7.8 18.7
Balance -12,556 -9,041 -12,652 -16,148 -14,582 -22,462 -9.7 54.0
Singapore Export 20,755 29,079 26,447 29,314 32,393 31,269 10.5 -3.5
Import 15,557 18,454 17,784 19,322 26,414 26,094 36.7 -1.2
Balance 5,198 10,625 8,663 9,992 5,979 5,175 -40.2 -13.4
Indonesia Export 3,054 6,948 6,024 6,864 8,171 7,733 19.0 -5.4
Import 12,014 16,478 19,184 20,205 20,829 20,147 3.1 -3.3
Balance -8,960 -9,530 -13,160 -13,341 -12,658 -12,414 -5.1 -1.9
Malaysia Export 10,461 14,080 11,774 12,872 12,952 13,192 0.6 1.8
Import 33,685 25,901 36,607 37,369 39,354 40,567 5.3 3.1
Balance -23,224 -11,821 -24,820 -24,497 -26,402 #REF! 7.8 #REF!
Thailand Export 7,257 8,976 10,501 11,033 12,521 13,299 13.5 6.2
Import 19,890 22,694 29,484 31,109 31,863 33,447 2.4 5.0
Balance -12,633 -13,717 -18,983 -20,075 -19,342 -20,148 -3.7 4.2
Philippine Export 6,895 7,377 8,194 8,451 8,716 8,642 3.1 -0.8
Import 9,250 7,892 10,042 11,623 12,592 12,778 8.3 1.5
Balance -2,355 -515 -1,849 -3,172 -3,875 -4,136 22.2 6.7
ASEAN 5 Export 41,562 59,119 54,783 60,119 66,072 65,528 9.9 -0.8
Import 90,397 91,419 113,102 119,628 131,050 133,033 9.5 1.5
Balance -48,834 -32,300 -58,319 -59,509 -64,978 -67,505 9.2 3.9
India Export 8,014 19,345 21,692 25,683 33,567 34,536 30.7 2.9
Import 18,896 29,683 46,117 48,643 54,460 57,762 12.0 6.1
Balance -10,882 -10,338 -24,425 -22,960 -20,893 -23,226 -9.0 11.2
Australia Export 15,536 21,720 22,225 24,624 25,547 26,228 3.7 2.7
Import 7,454 8,815 9,634 10,192 10,290 11,018 1.0 7.1
Balance 8,082 12,905 12,591 14,432 15,257 15,210 5.7 -0.3
Canada Export 212,340 250,283 267,235 283,070 300,158 293,301 6.0 -2.3
Import 294,216 281,822 283,538 305,292 325,017 325,761 6.5 0.2
Balance -81,876 -31,539 -16,303 -22,222 -24,859 -32,460 11.9 30.6
Mexico Export 120,444 163,757 230,520 244,018 265,999 256,860 9.0 -3.4
Import 173,771 232,804 299,852 318,489 352,583 364,461 10.7 3.4
Balance -53,327 -69,047 -69,332 -74,471 -86,584 -107,601 16.3 24.3
Brazil Export 15,343 35,348 30,139 37,369 39,461 42,716 5.6 8.2
Import 24,572 24,200 24,609 27,942 30,152 30,806 7.9 2.2
Balance -9,229 11,148 5,530 9,427 9,309 11,910 -1.3 27.9
Saudi Arabia Export 6,903 11,462 18,007 16,327 13,601 14,349 -16.7 5.5
Import 27,204 31,485 16,988 18,915 24,124 13,451 27.5 -44.2
Balance -20,301 -20,023 1,019 -2,588 -10,523 898 306.6 -108.5
France Export 22,612 27,353 31,300 33,689 36,749 37,883 9.1 3.1
Import 34,312 38,817 47,045 49,290 52,834 57,903 7.2 9.6
Balance -11,700 -11,464 -15,745 -15,601 -16,085 -20,020 3.1 24.5
Germany Export 34,874 48,482 49,540 54,114 57,779 60,064 6.8 4.0
Import 85,733 83,505 114,556 117,922 125,206 127,804 6.2 2.1
Balance -50,859 -35,023 -65,016 -63,808 -67,427 -67,740 5.7 0.5
Italy Export 11,627 14,393 16,777 18,466 22,925 23,882 24.1 4.2
Import 31,293 28,797 45,471 50,076 54,951 57,496 9.7 4.6
Balance -19,666 -14,404 -28,694 -31,610 -32,026 -33,614 1.3 5.0
UK Export 38,870 49,080 56,566 66,698 69,664 69,078 4.4 -0.8
Import 51,826 52553 54,940 53,910 61,461 63,795 14.0 3.8
Balance -12,956 -3,473 1,626 12,788 8,203 -35.9 -100.0
Russia Export 3,962 5,994 5,831 7,003 6,658 5,785 -4.9 -13.1
Import 16,307 25,691 14,542 17,055 20,858 22,260 22.3 6.7
Balance -12,344 -19,697 -8,711 -10,053 -14,200 -16,475 41.3 16.0
Vietnam Export 1,193 3,706 10,098 8,134 9,676 10,860 19.0 12.2
Import 6,631 14,868 42,086 46,477 49,159 66,610 5.8 35.5
Balance -5,438 -11,162 -31,987 -38,343 -39,483 -55,749 3.0 41.2
Export 22,926 26,090 29,374 32,509 34,852 38,123 7.2 9.4
Euro Import 51,901 58,542 86,519 94,115 109,531 113,245 16.4 3.4
Balance -28,975 -32,452 -57,145 -61,606 -74,679 -75,122 21.2 0.6


USA Census Statistics (USA)


Table 2-1 China's Export to USA (million$,% FOB

2010 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2016 2017 2018 2019
I Live animals, fish, dairy 1,963 2,103 2,006 2,007 2,060 1,619 -4.6 0.0 2.6 -21.4
II Vegetable products 989 1,442 1,578 1,594 1,535 1,328 9.5 1.0 -3.7 -13.5
III Animal, vegetable oil 57 86 76 84 88 87 -12.2 11.2 4.7 -1.2
IV Beverages, tabacco 2,690 3,584 3,572 3,828 4,389 3,243 -0.3 7.2 14.7 -26.1
V Mineral, ores, oils 1,229 1,336 1,587 1,623 1,706 1,252 18.8 2.2 5.1 -26.6
VI Chemicals, fertilizers 9,155 12,549 11,830 13,947 16,734 11,369 -5.7 17.9 20.0 -32.1
VII Plastics, rubber 10,482 17,990 16,315 18,535 21,985 19,417 -9.3 13.6 18.6 -11.7
VIII Leather, skin 5,593 7,939 6,490 6,824 7,129 5,370 -18.3 5.1 4.5 -24.7
IX Wood,cork, charcoal 2,766 4,103 4,116 3,987 4,286 3,302 0.3 -3.1 7.5 -22.9
X Pulp, paper 2,438 4,548 3,720 4,139 4,788 4,572 -18.2 11.3 15.7 -4.5
XI Textile, clothing, silk 31,444 44,774 42,116 42,446 45,810 42,623 -5.9 0.8 7.9 -7.0
XII Footware, umbrellas 13,317 18,486 15,816 15,963 16,681 16,161 -14.4 0.9 4.5 -3.1
XIII Stone, glass, ceramic 3,839 8,433 6,400 7,338 8,706 7,085 -24.1 14.7 18.6 -18.6
XIV Jewerry, pearl 2,054 4,207 3,724 3,587 3,140 3,079 -11.5 -3.7 -12.5 -1.9
XV Base metals 15,021 23,206 19,685 22,511 24,744 21,126 -15.2 14.4 9.9 -14.6
72 Iron & Steel 958 1,495 536 598 673 508 -64.2 11.6 12.6 -24.5
XVI Machinery, Electronics 132,874 179,533 172,440 198,539 222,188 192,607 -4.0 15.1 11.9 -13.3
84 Machinery & parts 71,633 84,352 79,376 91,645 102,817 86,465 -5.9 15.5 12.2 -15.9
85 Electrical machinery, parts 61,241 95,180 93,064 106,894 119,372 106,142 -2.2 14.9 11.7 -11.1
XVII Vehicles, airpcraft,vessels 10,438 16,955 16,804 19,684 23,001 17,406 -0.9 17.1 16.9 -24.3
XVIII Optical, clocks, musical insr 7,658 11,005 10,878 10,640 11,530 14,298 -1.1 -2.2 8.4 24.0
XIX Arms, amunition 61 109 88 82 97 83 -14.5
XX Miscellaneous 29,047 47,025 45,352 51,034 56,289 50,558 -3.6 12.5 10.3 -10.2
XXI Works of art, antiques 39 121 55 40 71 76 7.6
XXII Commodities not classified 151 6 436 1,324 1,405 2,012 43.2
Total 283,304 409,538 385,085 429,755 478,364 418,673 -6.0 11.6 11.3 -12.5
I Live animals, fish, dairy 0.7 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4
II Vegetable products 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.3
III Animal, vegetable oil 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
IV Beverages, tabacco 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.9 0.8
V Mineral, ores, oils 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.4 0.3
VI Chemicals, fertilizers 3.2 3.1 3.1 3.2 3.5 2.7
VII Plastics, rubber 3.7 4.4 4.2 4.3 4.6 4.6
VIII Leather, skin 2.0 1.9 1.7 1.6 1.5 1.3
IX Wood,cork, charcoal 1.0 1.0 1.1 0.9 0.9 0.8
X Pulp, paper 0.9 1.1 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.1
XI Textile, clothing, silk 11.1 10.9 10.9 9.9 9.6 10.2
XII Footware, umbrellas 4.7 4.5 4.1 3.7 3.5 3.9
XIII Stone, glass, ceramic 1.4 2.1 1.7 1.7 1.8 1.7
XIV Jewerry, pearl 0.7 1.0 1.0 0.8 0.7 0.7
XV Base metals 5.3 5.7 5.1 5.2 5.2 5.0
72 Iron & Steel 0.3 0.4 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
XVI Machinery, Electronics 46.9 43.8 44.8 46.2 46.4 46.0
84 Machinery & parts 25.3 20.6 20.6 21.3 21.5 20.7
85 Electrical machinery, parts 21.6 23.2 24.2 24.9 25.0 25.4
XVII Vehicles, airpcraft,vessels 3.7 4.1 4.4 4.6 4.8 4.2
XVIII Optical, clocks, musical insr 2.7 2.7 2.8 2.5 2.4 3.4
XIX Arms, amunition 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
XX Miscellaneous 10.3 11.5 11.8 11.9 11.8 12.1
XXI Works of art, antiques 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
XXII Commodities not classified 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.3 0.3 0.5
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0


China Trade Statistics


Table 2-2 China'sImport from USA (million$,%, CIF)

I Live animals, fish, dairy 1,475 2,030 2,782 3,056 2,253 2,124 9.9 -26.3 -5.7
II Vegetable products 12,354 16,423 16,650 16,962 9,499 8,526 1.9 -44.0 -10.2
III Animal, vegetable oil 280 68 149 139 106 97 -7.2 -23.5 -8.1
IV Beverages, tabacco 1,557 3,641 2,624 1,768 2,336 1,901 -32.6 32.1 -18.6
V Mineral, ores, oils 3,294 4,568 3,840 9,045 11,991 4,661 135.5 32.6 -61.1
VI Chemicals, fertilizers 10,903 12,656 12,530 14,577 16,487 15,279 16.3 13.1 -7.3
VII Plastics, rubber 7,387 7,442 7,153 8,147 8,244 7,045 13.9 1.2 -14.5
VIII Leather, skin 1,101 1,671 1,285 1,258 977 666 -2.1 -22.3 -31.8
IX Wood,cork, charcoal 1,186 2,221 2,516 3,070 3,082 1,580 22.0 0.4 -48.7
X Pulp, paper 4,496 5,309 5,064 5,742 5,019 3,681 13.4 -12.6 -26.6
XI Textile, clothing, silk 3,058 1,982 1,277 1,841 1,889 1,367 44.2 2.6 -27.6
XII Footware, umbrellas 92 114 126 116 176 263 -7.3 51.5 49.0
XIII Stone, glass, ceramic 882 1,167 1,289 1,254 1,408 1,456 -2.8 12.3 3.4
XIV Jewerry, pearl 259 5,996 2,694 5,289 4,423 651 96.3 -16.4 -85.3
XV Base metals 6,505 5,759 4,593 5,471 5,699 4,301 19.1 4.2 -24.5
72 Iron & Steel 939 285 225 369 422 277 64.0 14.4 -34.5
XVI Machinery, Electronics 28,721 35,423 30,360 33,877 38,030 37,590 11.6 12.3 -1.2
84 Machinery & parts 13,569 15,826 14,504 16,494 18,307 17,362 13.7 11.0 -5.2
85 Electrical machinery, parts 15,152 19,597 15,855 17,383 19,722 20,229 9.6 13.5 2.6
XVII Vehicles, airpcraft,vessels 10,426 30,261 27,345 29,280 29,227 17,860 7.1 -0.2 -38.9
XVIII Optical, clocks, musical insr 7,008 11,343 11,173 11,757 13,219 12,390 5.2 12.4 -6.3
XIX Arms, amunition 1 0 1 1 1 0
XX Miscellaneous 302 605 564 537 628 568 -4.7 16.8 -9.4
XXI Works of art, antiques 4 16 20 11 27 63
XXII Commodities not classified 745 42 367 745 377 642
Total 102,036 148,737 134,402 153,943 155,097 122,714 14.5 0.7 -20.9
I Live animals, fish, dairy 1.4 1.4 2.1 2.0 1.5 1.7
II Vegetable products 12.1 11.0 12.4 11.0 6.1 6.9
III Animal, vegetable oil 0.3 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
IV Beverages, tabacco 1.5 2.4 2.0 1.1 1.5 1.5
V Mineral, ores, oils 3.2 3.1 2.9 5.9 7.7 3.8
VI Chemicals, fertilizers 10.7 8.5 9.3 9.5 10.6 12.5
VII Plastics, rubber 7.2 5.0 5.3 5.3 5.3 5.7
VIII Leather, skin 1.1 1.1 1.0 0.8 0.6 0.5
IX Wood,cork, charcoal 1.2 1.5 1.9 2.0 2.0 1.3
X Pulp, paper 4.4 3.6 3.8 3.7 3.2 3.0
XI Textile, clothing, silk 3.0 1.3 1.0 1.2 1.2 1.1
XII Footware, umbrellas 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.2
XIII Stone, glass, ceramic 0.9 0.8 1.0 0.8 0.9 1.2
XIV Jewerry, pearl 0.3 4.0 2.0 3.4 2.9 0.5
XV Base metals 6.4 3.9 3.4 3.6 3.7 3.5
72 Iron & Steel 0.9 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.3 0.2
XVI Machinery, Electronics 28.1 23.8 22.6 22.0 24.5 30.6
84 Machinery & parts 13.3 10.6 10.8 10.7 11.8 14.1
85 Electrical machinery, parts 14.8 13.2 11.8 11.3 12.7 16.5
XVII Vehicles, airpcraft,vessels 10.2 20.3 20.3 19.0 18.8 14.6
XVIII Optical, clocks, musical insr 6.9 7.6 8.3 7.6 8.5 10.1
XIX Arms, amunition 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
XX Miscellaneous 0.3 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.5
XXI Works of art, antiques 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1
XXII Commodities not classified 0.7 0.0 0.3 0.5 0.2 0.5
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0




2. Free Trade With China Wasn't Such a Great Idea for the U.S.

Noah Smith
229
By

In his recent book "Economics Rules," Harvard economist Dani Rodrik laments how economists often portray a public consensus while disagreeing strongly in private. In effect, economists behave like scientists behind closed doors, but as preachers when dealing with the public.

Nowhere is this evangelism clearer than on the issue of trade. Ask any economist what issue they agree on, and the first answer you’re likely to hear is “free trade is good.”  The general public disagrees vehemently, but economists are almost unanimous on this point.

But look at actual economics research, and you will find a very different picture. The most recent example is a paper by celebrated labor economists David Autor, David Dorn and Gordon Hanson, titled “The China Shock: Learning from Labor Market Adjustment to Large Changes in Trade.” The study shows that increased trade with China caused severe and permanent harm to many American workers:

Adjustment in local labor markets is remarkably slow, with wages and labor-force participation rates remaining depressed and unemployment rates remaining elevated for at least a full decade after the China trade shock commences. Exposed workers experience greater job churning and reduced lifetime income. At the national level, employment has fallen in U.S. industries more exposed to import competition...but offsetting employment gains in other industries have yet to materialize.

Autor, et al. show powerful evidence that industries and regions that have been more exposed to Chinese import competition since 2000 -- the year China joined the World Trade Organization -- have been hit hard and have not recovered. Workers in these industries and regions don't go on to better jobs, or even similar jobs in different industries. Instead, they shuffle from low-paid job to low-paid job, never recovering the prosperity they had before Chinese competition hit. Many of them end up on welfare. This is very different from earlier decades, when workers who lost their jobs to import competition usually went into higher-productivity industries, to the benefit of almost everyone.

In other words, the public might have been wrong about free trade in the 1980s and 1990s, but things have changed. Popular opinion seems to be exactly right about the effect of trade with China -- it has killed jobs and damaged the lives of many, many Americans. Economists may blithely declare that free trade is wonderful, but our best researchers have now shown that public misgivings about these smooth assurances have been completely justified.

Why are economists so willing to declare to the world that free trade is good, even after reading papers like the one by Autor et al.? Part of the problem is the definition of “good.” According to most models of trade, reducing trade barriers raises efficiency -- which is to say, total gross domestic product. But efficiency says nothing about fairness, and almost any model of trade will show that some people, industries and regions lose out. If most Americans experience slight gains from lower import prices, and a few lose their livelihoods and have to go on welfare, economists call that a “good” outcome, because they are so focused on the concept of efficiency. But because the public cares about a lot more than efficiency, the job losses in industries and regions knocked out by China since 2000 have made economists seem increasingly callous and out of touch.

But this is only part of the problem. Economists are also stubbornly unwilling to question their benchmark theories, even when the evidence presents a challenge to these theories. The fact that Autor et al. find total national employment declining in response to trade with China should be cause for concern. Standard trade models, especially the simple ones taught in Econ 101, predict that this shouldn’t have happened. Autor et al. sternly rebuke the economics profession for relying too much on theory, and not enough on evidence, when it comes to the issue of trade:

We argue that having failed to anticipate how significant the dislocations from trade might be, it is incumbent on the economics literature to more convincingly estimate gains from trade, such that the case for free trade is not based on theory alone, but on a foundation of evidence.

The authors suggest that real-world economies may simply be much worse at adjusting to big changes than most economic models assume. It is expensive and time-consuming for workers to train for new jobs and to move to new locations. It also takes time and money for businesses to figure out how to change their business models in response to the new landscape presented by a global economy with China in it. These adjustment costs might overwhelm the gains from trade.

In the case of China, Autor et al.’s warning may come too late. China’s economy is slowing and its costs are rising rapidly. No new prospective trade partners will be able to replicate anything close to the China shock. In other words, the unique problems created by trade with China might have been a one-off event. But economists should still re-evaluate their benchmark theories, and ease up in their adamant rhetoric in favor of free trade.

 


Table USA Trade (Census Basis) million$

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 20115 11/00 12/11 13/12 14/13 15/41
World Ttl Export 1,288,699 1,499,240 1,561,690 1,592,784 1,632,639 1,513,888 16.3 4.2 2.0 2.5 -7.3
Import 1,934,555 2,239,886 2,303,784 2,294,453 2,374,101 2,272,821 15.8 2.9 -0.4 3.5 -4.3
Balance -645,856 -740,646 -742,095 -701,669 -741,462 -758,933 14.7 0.2 -5.4 5.7 2.4
Japn Export 60,486 65,800 69,964 65,206 66,827 62,472 8.8 6.3 -6.8 2.5 -6.5
Import 120,545 128,928 146,438 138,573 134,004 131,120 7.0 13.6 -5.4 -3.3 -2.2
Balance -60,060 -63,128 -76,474 -73,368 -67,177 -68,648 5.1 21.1 -4.1 -8.4 2.2
China Export 91,881 104,122 110,516 121,736 123,676 116,186 13.3 6.1 10.2 1.6 -6.1
Import 364,944 399,371 425,626 440,448 466,754 481,881 9.4 6.6 3.5 6.0 3.2
Balance -273,063 -295,250 -315,111 -318,711 -343,078 -365,695 8.1 6.7 1.1 7.6 6.6
Korea Export 38,846 43,462 42,265 41,715 44,471 43,499 11.9 -2.8 -1.3 6.6 -2.2
Import 48,875 56,661 58,902 62,388 69,518 71,827 15.9 4.0 5.9 11.4 3.3
Balance -10,029 -13,200 -16,636 -20,674 -25,047 -28,328 31.6 26.0 24.3 21.2 13.1
Taiwan Export 26,043 25,933 24,338 25,472 26,670 25,929 -0.4 -6.2 4.7 4.7 -2.8
Import 35,846 41,405 38,861 37,940 40,518 40,708 15.5 -6.1 -2.4 6.8 0.5
Balance -9,803 -15,473 -14,523 -12,468 -13,848 -14,779 57.8 -6.1 -14.2 11.1 6.7
Hong Kong Export 26,570 36,399 37,471 42,342 40,858 37,174 37.0 2.9 13.0 -3.5 -9.0
Import 4,296 4,410 5,456 5,684 5,869 6,703 2.6 23.7 4.2 3.2 14.2
Balance 22,274 31,989 32,015 36,658 34,989 30,471 43.6 0.1 14.5 -4.6 -12.9
Singapore Export 29,017 31,282 30,526 30,672 30,237 28,657 7.8 -2.4 0.5 -1.4 -5.2
Import 17,427 19,116 20,232 17,843 16,426 18,235 9.7 5.8 -11.8 -7.9 11.0
Balance 11,590 12,167 10,294 12,829 13,811 10,422 5.0 -15.4 24.6 7.7 -24.5
Indonesia Export 6,946 7,421 7,999 9,100 8,284 7,123 6.8 7.8 13.8 -9.0 -14.0
Import 16,478 19,111 18,002 18,877 19,361 19,575 16.0 -5.8 4.9 2.6 1.1
Balance -9,532 -11,690 -10,004 -9,777 -11,077 -12,452 22.6 -14.4 -2.3 13.3 12.4
Malaysia Export 14,080 14,264 12,818 13,007 13,086 12,293 1.3 -10.1 1.5 0.6 -6.1
Import 25,900 25,777 25,935 27,289 30,420 33,828 -0.5 0.6 5.2 11.5 11.2
Balance -11,821 -11,513 -13,117 -14,282 -17,334 -21,535 -2.6 13.9 8.9 21.4 24.2
Thailand Export 8,977 10,930 10,888 11,797 11,810 11,247 21.8 -0.4 8.4 0.1 -4.8
Import 22,693 24,833 26,072 26,173 27,123 28,595 9.4 5.0 0.4 3.6 5.4
Balance -13,716 -13,903 -15,185 -14,376 -15,313 -17,348 1.4 9.2 -5.3 6.5 13.3
Philippine Export 7,376 7,728 8,087 8,404 8,453 7,909 4.8 4.7 3.9 0.6 -6.4
Import 7,982 9,145 9,581 9,269 10,144 10,200 14.6 4.8 -3.3 9.4 0.6
Balance -606 -1,417 -1,493 -865 -1,691 -2,291 133.9 5.4 -42.0 95.4 35.5
Vietnam Export 3,709 4,315 4,623 5,036 11,136 8,317 16.3 7.1 8.9 121.1 -25.3
Import 14,868 17,488 20,268 24,657 30,219 15,564 17.6 15.9 21.7 22.6 -48.5
Balance -11,159 -13,172 -15,645 -19,620 -19,083 -7,247 18.0 18.8 25.4 -2.7 -62.0
ASEAN 6 Export 70,105 75,941 74,940 78,016 83,006 75,546 8.3 -1.3 4.1 6.4 -9.0
Import 105,349 115,469 120,090 124,108 133,693 125,997 9.6 4.0 3.3 7.7 -5.8
Balance -35,244 -39,528 -45,149 -46,092 -50,687 -50,451 12.2 14.2 2.1 10.0 -0.5
India Export 19,250 21,542 22,106 21,842 21,606 21,530 11.9 2.6 -1.2 -1.1 -0.4
Import 29,533 36,155 40,513 41,845 45,244 44,741 22.4 12.1 3.3 8.1 -1.1
Balance -10,283 -14,612 -18,407 -20,003 -23,638 -23,211 42.1 26.0 8.7 18.2 -1.8
Australia Export 21,798 27,626 31,160 26,130 26,582 25,038 26.7 12.8 -16.1 1.7 -5.8
Import 8,583 10,243 9,567 9,272 10,672 10,862 19.3 -6.6 -3.1 15.1 1.8
Balance 13,215 17,383 21,594 16,858 15,910 14,176 31.5 24.2 -21.9 -5.6 -10.9
Canada Export 249,105 281,292 292,651 301,610 312,421 280,327 12.9 4.0 3.1 3.6 -10.3
Import 277,648 315,325 324,264 332,553 347,798 295,191 13.6 2.8 2.6 4.6 -15.1
Balance -28,543 -34,033 -31,614 -30,943 -35,377 -14,864 19.2 -7.1 -2.1 14.3 -58.0
Mexico Export 163,473 196,287 215,907 226,079 240,249 236,377 20.1 10.0 4.7 6.3 -1.6
Import 229,908 262,873 277,694 280,529 294,074 294,741 14.3 5.6 1.0 4.8 0.2
Balance -66,435 -66,586 -61,787 -54,450 -53,825 -58,364 0.2 -7.2 -11.9 -1.1 8.4
Brazil Export 35,425 43,019 43,807 44,119 42,429 31,666 21.4 1.8 0.7 -3.8 -25.4
Import 23,976 31,737 32,126 27,634 30,537 27,405 32.4 1.2 -14.0 10.5 -10.3
Balance 11,449 11,282 11,681 16,485 11,892 4,261 -1.5 3.5 41.1 -27.9 -64.2
Saudi Arabia Export 11,556 13,924 17,967 18,957 18,705 19,690 20.5 29.0 5.5 -1.3 5.3
Import 31,413 47,476 55,667 51,807 47,041 22,081 51.1 17.3 -6.9 -9.2 -53.1
Balance -19,857 -33,553 -37,700 -32,850 -28,336 -2,391 69.0 12.4 -12.9 -13.7 -91.6
Nigeria Export 4,068 4,905 5,030 6,392 5,968 3,410 20.6 2.5 27.1 -6.6 -42.9
Import 30,516 33,854 19,014 11,724 3,839 1,961 10.9 -43.8 -38.3 -67.3 -48.9
Balance -26,448 -28,949 -13,985 -5,332 2,129 1,449 9.5 -51.7 -61.9 -139.9 -31.9
Euro Area Export 176,587 196,310 193,965 201,392 205,456 201,392 11.2 -1.2 3.8 2.0 -2.0
Import 242,215 285,023 294,445 331,598 326,994 331,598 17.7 3.3 12.6 -1.4 1.4
Balance -65,629 -88,712 -100,481 -130,206 -121,538 -130,206 35.2 13.3 29.6 -6.7 7.1
France Export 26,969 27,857 30,811 31,745 31,301 30,077 3.3 10.6 3.0 -1.4 -3.9
Import 38,355 40,049 41,647 45,708 46,874 47,644 4.4 4.0 9.8 2.6 1.6
Balance -11,386 -12,192 -10,835 -13,963 -15,573 -17,567 7.1 -11.1 28.9 11.5 12.8
Germany Export 48,161 49,294 48,801 47,362 49,363 49,947 2.4 -1.0 -2.9 4.2 1.2
Import 82,429 98,684 109,226 114,345 123,260 124,139 19.7 10.7 4.7 7.8 0.7
Balance -34,268 -49,390 -60,425 -66,983 -73,897 -74,192 44.1 22.3 10.9 10.3 0.4
Italy Export 14,219 16,038 16,097 16,755 16,968 16,249 12.8 0.4 4.1 1.3 -4.2
Import 28,505 33,974 36,965 38,692 42,115 44,005 19.2 8.8 4.7 8.8 4.5
Balance -14,286 -17,936 -20,868 -21,937 -25,147 -27,756 25.6 16.3 5.1 14.6 10.4
Netherland Export 34,939 42,227 40,619 42,572 43,075 40,706 20.9 -3.8 4.8 1.2 -5.5
Import 19,055 23,455 22,260 18,231 20,818 16,752 23.1 -5.1 -18.1 14.2 -19.5
Balance 15,884 18,772 18,359 24,341 22,257 23,954 18.2 -2.2 32.6 -8.6 7.6
Spain Export 10,178 11,032 9,552 10,241 10,200 10,249 8.4 -13.4 7.2 -0.4 0.5
Import 8,553 11,018 11,768 11,677 14,416 14,090 28.8 6.8 -0.8 23.5 -2.3
Balance 1,625 14 -2,216 -1,436 -4,216 -3,841 -99.2 -35.2 193.6 -8.9
UK Export 48,414 56,033 54,860 47,353 53,823 56,353 15.7 -2.1 -13.7 13.7 4.7
Import 49,775 51,263 55,003 52,817 54,392 57,805 3.0 7.3 -4.0 3.0 6.3
Balance -1,362 4,771 -144 -5,464 -569 -1,452
Russia Export 6,006 8,318 10,695 11,137 10,753 7,087 38.5 28.6 4.1 -3.4 -34.1
Import 25,691 34,619 29,379 27,086 23,653 16,562 34.8 -15.1 -7.8 -12.7 -30.0
Balance -19,685 -26,301 -18,684 -15,950 -12,900 -9,475 33.6 -29.0 -14.6 -19.1 -26.6



Reference

March 16 Economics and Trade Bulletin

Conclusions
• In 2014, the U.S. goods trade deficit with China increased by
7.5 percent year-on-year to $342.6 billion, a new record. In the
first eight months of 2015, the U.S. trade deficit in goods with
China totaled $237.3 billion, a 9.7 percent increase year-onyear.
Over the same period, U.S. deficit with China in advanced
technology products reached $72.7 billion. China stalled
on liberalizing key sectors in which the United States is competitive
globally, such as services.
• As a consequence of domestic economic weakness, China’s stated
rebalancing policies appear to have been put on hold. Instead,
fearful of a protracted slowdown, the Chinese government
has been intervening in various sectors of the economy,
including the stock market. However, the government’s intervention,
which failed to arrest the stock market’s fall and stabilize
the economy, undermined public confidence in the ability
of China’s policymakers to successfully manage the economy.
• Although it has been ten years since China
moved the renminbi
(RMB) to a managed float,
the government continues to
intervene in foreign exchange markets. For the first half of
2015 the government has prevented the RMB from depreciating,
seeking its inclusion in the International Monetary
Fund’s Special Drawing Rights basket of reserve currencies.
However, on August 11, the People’s Bank of China unexpectedly
devalued the RMB, giving rise to fears among observers
and policymakers that the economic slowdown was becoming
entrenched.
• The U.S. government’s efforts to address tensions in the U.S.-
China relationship through bilateral dialogue continue to yield
limited results. The latest Strategic and Economic Dialogue
concluded with some progress on environmental and financial
issues, but reached an impasse in addressing fundamental
strategic and economic issues such as cybersecurity, anticorruption
cooperation, and investment barriers to foreign
firms in many industries.
• President
Xi came to the United States in September on a
state visit, and although Presidents Obama and Xi discussed
several issues of concern, including commercial cyber espionage
by Chinese actors, there were few significant breakthroughs.
Among outcomes were the statements by the two presidents
that neither country will engage in cyber espionage (though
China continued to deny any involvement in commercial cyber

theft) and commitments to enhance cooperation on combatting
climate change.
• China’s adherence to the World Trade Organization principles
and its Protocol of Accession remains spotty. Most recently, the
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has engaged China
over a program that provides
export subsidies considered illegal
by the World Trade Organization to businesses in seven
critical industries.
• China launched two new development institutions:
the Asian
Infrastructure Investment Bank and the New Development
Bank. I
n addition to boosting China’s economy by creating export
opportunities for its companies, the new banks aim to extend
China’s role in the international economic order, potentially
challenging established multilateral development institutions.

Section 2: Foreign Investment Climate in China
Although China has been a major destination for global foreign
direct investment (FDI) over the past decade, it maintains the most
restrictive FDI regime among all Organization for Economic Co-Operation
and Development (OECD) and G20 countries, according to
the OECD. The U.S. Department of State estimates that in addition
t
o over 1,000 rules and regulatory documents related to FDI
in China issued by central government ministries, local legislatures
and governments also enact their own restrictive rules and regulations
on foreign investments in their jurisdictions. Further, Chinese
government administrators seek to ensure i
nbound FDI supports
industrial policy goals—
designed to bolster the development
of domestic industries and the creation of national champions
—by
identifying different industries as desirable for or restricted from
foreign investment. Taken together, these laws and policies—and
uncertain application thereof—create a complicated, opaque, and
unfavorable environment for foreign investment.

As a result of this restrictive legal and regulatory environment,
the foreign investment climate in China is
deteriorating. Though
the majority of U.S. firms still consider China a profitable market,
optimism about future operations and profitability there is waning.
Foreign companies felt the least welcome in sectors where China’s
industrial policies favor domestic companies and authorities impose
localization requirements. Some of the problems highlighted by foreign
companies are the lack of market access in certain sectors and
the conditioning of market access on the transfer of technology, intellectual
property (IP), or know-how to local competitors.

China primarily maintains national-level market access restrictions
through a Foreign Investment Catalogue, though local governments
frequently employ region- or industry-specific Catalogues, further
restricting access. Though Chinese authorities released an updated
version of the Foreign Investment Catalogue in 2015 that reduced
the number of sectors where foreign investment is restricted and
prohibited, industries the Chinese government has long sought to
nurture as national champions—such as automobiles and healthcare—
saw heightened restrictions.
VerDate Sep