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US calls for decoupling prove ‘sticky’ as China boosts share of global trade during pandemic
- Despite calls for a China decoupling, its share of exports to developed nations leapt to about 25 per cent in 2020 before settling around 20 per cent this year
- Few other countries have seen their share of the global trade pie rise during the pandemic, meaning decoupling remains ‘wishful thinking’, some analysts say
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Calls to decouple from China are becoming less of a reality as the country’s share of global trade soars, proving that cutting trade ties with the world’s second largest economy is a lot stickier than expected, analysts say.
Despite the push for decoupling from Washington and some other Western countries, China looks likely to maintain its integral position in global supply chains after the coronavirus pandemic, said Louis Kuijs, head of Asia Economics at Oxford Economics in new research published on Tuesday.
During the pandemic, China stepped up its drive to improve supply chains, including cutting transport fees and ensuring smooth port logistics, he said.
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“China’s strong export performance since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic underscores that the global supply chains developed in recent decades – and in which China plays a key role – are much ‘stickier’ than many suspected,” he said.
Very few other countries have seen their share of the global trade pie rise
China’s global market share of exports rose to around 18 per cent in early 2021 due to substantial gains in developed markets, according to Capital Economics. In spite of calls for decoupling, China’s share of exports to developed countries leapt to near 25 per cent in 2020 before settling just above 20 per cent this year.
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