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Tariff cut proposal could shift China’s Southeast Asia manufacturing strategy

If implemented as outlined by Beijing, the renewed US-China tariff changes would likely bring duties on most listed Chinese products below 10%, while some Southeast Asia hubs still face extra duties.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Trade & Tariffs

South China Morning Post reports that Chinese manufacturers have long used Southeast Asia to reduce exposure to higher US duties on goods made in China, but proposed tariff cuts under a new US-China Board of Trade could weaken that incentive for some products.

The outlet says a White House statement did not specify exact cut levels, but US official data suggest that if Beijing’s outline is implemented, duties on most of these products would fall to below 10%, with some product categories potentially facing zero duties.

For certain Southeast Asian manufacturing hubs, the incentives remain less clear, SCMP reports, pointing to Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand, which continue to face additional US tariffs of between 10% and 12.5%.

SCMP adds that the US imposed the duties on 60 trading partners in July after a Section 301 investigation into alleged forced labor.

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