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US-China trade war
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SCMP Series
Behind the tariffs
4 of 7
1
Behind the Tariffs 01: Washing machines and the roots of the trade war
Tariffs have impacted washing machines and customers who buy them.
2
Behind the Tariffs 02: How bicycles link China and the US
Roughly 95 per cent of the bicycles sold in the US come from China.
3
Behind the tariffs 03: Solar cells and the exodus of Chinese companies
Solar cells.
4
Behind the Tariffs 04: Trucks, trade and Hong Kong’s conundrum
A semitrailer truck.
5
Behind the Tariffs 05: Handbags, game controllers and the IP battle
A handbag.
6
Behind the Tariffs 06: Salad spinners, tariff exemptions and supply chains
What does a salad spinner have in common with a breast pump or guitar tuner?
7
Behind the Tariffs 07: Epilogue, analysis and what next
Behind the Tariffs podcast
A semitrailer truck.
Podcasts

Behind the Tariffs: Trucks, trade services and Hong Kong’s trade war conundrum

  • Hong Kong’s massive logistics and service economy is being battered by the effects of the US-China trade war
  • Inside the life of a Hong Kong truck driver facing unemployment as the effects of tariffs reshape the the nature of manufacturing in southern China
US-China trade war
Naomi Ng
Finbarr Bermingham
Jarrod Watt
Naomi Ng,Finbarr Berminghamin BrusselsandJarrod Wattin Hong Kong
Why you can trust SCMP

If the US-China trade war has a no-man’s land, then maybe it’s somewhere near a truckstop not far from the Lo Wu border crossing that regulates traffic between mainland China and Hong Kong.

Finbarr Bermingham travels up to a once-busy truckers’ diner to meet Kwok Yip-biu, who has driven trucks back and forth over the border for 30 years. Kwok recalls the “golden era” of Hong Kong as a gateway for trade into and out of mainland China, and how, lately, the trade war has put the brakes on the local economy.

Trade economist David Dodwell pulls apart the often overlooked value of services in global trade, and outlines the bigger picture of how the trade war is damaging the Hong Kong economy. Dodwell also outlines how the trade war may redraw China’s internal supply chain, forcing Hong Kong to become a spoke in the Greater Bay Area, rather than an international trade hub.

Featuring:

Kwok Yip-biu, truck driver, Hong Kong

Ng Win, diner owner, Hong Kong

David Dodwell, trade economist, Hong Kong

With special thanks to SCMP Hong Kong desk editor Denise Tsang for sourcing the interviews and live translation in this recording

Listen or subscribe now on iTunes, Spotify or on Stitcher

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