BEIJING: A growing number of Chinese companies are adopting a crafty way to evade US President Donald Trump’s tariffs: remove the “Made in China” label by shifting production to countries such as Vietnam, Serbia and Mexico.
The world’s two largest economies have been locked in a months-long trade fight after Trump imposed 25 percent customs duties on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods this summer, triggering a swift tit-for-tat response from Beijing.
Chinese factories making everything from bikes to tires, plastics and textiles are moving assembly lines abroad to skirt higher customs taxes on their exports to the United States and elsewhere, according to public filings.
Hl Corp, a Shenzhen-listed bike parts maker, made clear to investors last month that tariffs were in mind when it decided to move production to Vietnam.
The factory will “reduce and evade” the impact of tariffs, management wrote, noting Trump hit e-bikes in August, with new border taxes planned for bicycles and their parts.
Trump warned last week those tariffs — targeting $200 billion in Chinese imports — could come “very soon.”
“It’s inevitable that the new duties will lead companies to review their supply chains globally — overnight they will become 25 percent less competitive than they were,” said Christopher Rogers, a supply chain expert at trade data firm Panjiva.
Supply chains have already begun relocating out of China in recent years as its rising labor and environmental protection costs have made the country less attractive.
Tariffs are adding fuel to the fire, experts and companies say.
“China-US trade frictions are accelerating the trend of the global value chain changing shape,” said Cui Fan, research director at the China Society of WTO Studies, a think tank affiliated with the commerce ministry.
“The shifting abroad of labor-intensive assembly could bring unemployment problems and this needs to be closely watched,” Cui said, adding the shift would not help the US’s overall trade deficit.
The growing list of foreign firms moving supply chains away from China — toy company Hasbro, camera maker Olympus, shoe brands Deckers and Steve Madden, among many others — already has Beijing worried.
Less discussed are the Chinese factories doing the same.
Zhejiang Hailide New Material ships much of its industrial yarns, tire cord fabric, and printing materials from its plant in eastern Zhejiang province to the US and other countries.
Trump’s first wave of tariffs on $50 billion in goods this summer hit some of its exports; the next round of $200 billion looks like it will hit several more.
“Currently all of our company’s production is in China. To better evade the risks of anti-dumping cases and tariff hikes, our company has after lengthy investigation decided to set up a factory in Vietnam,” executives told investors last month.
“We hope to speed up its construction, and hope in the future it can handle production for the American market,” a company vice president said of the $155 million investment that will ramp up production by 50 percent.
Other moves abroad spurred on by tariff risks include a garment maker going to Myanmar, a mattress company opening a plant in Thailand and an electronic motor producer acquiring a Mexico-based factory, according to public filings from the firms.
Linglong Tyre is relying mostly on low cost credit to build a $994 million plant in Serbia.
The entire tire industry faces a “grim trade friction situation,” Linglong told investors last month, citing “one after another” anti-dumping cases against China.
“Building a factory abroad allows ‘indirect growth,’ by evading international trade barriers.”
China’s bike industry faces a similar pivotal moment. The center of manufacturing will shift away from China in the future, bike part maker H1 Corp. told investors when announcing its Vietnam factory.
Some of Hl’s customers started moving production — especially of e-bikes — to Vietnam, said Alex Lee, in charge of global sales at Hl Corp.
“First of all there is no anti-dumping tax on Vietnam,” Lee said, adding labor costs were lower there as well.
China’s growing e-bike industry faces duties not only from the US but also the European Union, which slapped provisional anti-dumping tariffs of 22 to 84 percent on Chinese-made e-bikes in July, alleging Chinese companies benefited from cut-rate aluminum and other state subsidies.
The state support Chinese companies receive is key to the Trump administration’s case in taxing Chinese goods, but Hl shows how companies may continue to benefit even after shifting some of their production overseas.
Government subsidies, including millions of yuan to “enhance company competitiveness,” eclipsed H1’s profit during the first six months of the year, its filings show.
Still the company went ahead and bought an operating factory in Vietnam.
Lee noted they had transferred mass production of aluminum forks and steering parts to the new plant from their factory in Tianjin.
He did not know if it would lead to job cuts in China.
Chinese companies flee overseas to avoid US tariffs
Chinese companies flee overseas to avoid US tariffs
- The world’s two largest economies have been locked in a months-long trade fight
- Supply chains have already begun relocating out of China in recent years
Saudi Arabia set to lead $500bn wave of GCC debt maturities: Kamco Invest
RIYADH: The Gulf Cooperation Council region is expected to see elevated levels of fixed-income maturities over the next five years, driven primarily by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, a new analysis showed.
In its latest report, Kamco Invest said fixed-income maturities in Saudi Arabia are projected to total $174.5 billion between 2026 and 2030, closely followed by the UAE at $171.8 billion.
Saudi Arabia’s debt market has recorded robust growth in recent years, attracting strong investor interest in fixed-income instruments amid a global environment of elevated interest rates.
In October, Kuwait Financial Center — also known as Markaz — said Saudi Arabia dominated the GCC’s primary debt market in the third quarter, raising $20.32 billion through 36 issuances, a 62.7 percent year-on-year increase in value.
“The bulk of the maturities in Saudi Arabia are for bonds and sukuk issued by the government at $106.4 billion, while in the case of the UAE, the lion’s share of maturities are for instruments issued by corporates at $136.2 billion,” said Kamco Invest.
Over the next five years, fixed-income maturities in Qatar are expected to reach $85.6 billion, while Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman are each projected to record maturities of around $25 billion.
Citing Bloomberg data, the report showed that GCC sovereign maturities stand at $244.8 billion over the 2026–2030 period, while corporate maturities are higher at $263.3 billion.
“Both bond and sukuk maturities are expected to remain elevated starting from 2026 until 2030 and then gradually taper for the rest of the tenor. The higher maturities during the next five years reflects deficit financing issuances from GCC governments as well as investment and refinancing related issuances from the corporates,” said Kamco Invest.
The report added that the majority of maturities are denominated in US dollars, accounting for 64.7 percent, followed by local-currency issuances in Saudi riyals and Qatari riyals at 10.6 percent and 6.3 percent, respectively.
Owing to the strong credit profiles of GCC governments, most maturities fall within the high investment-grade category. A-rated instruments account for $208.7 billion, while total investment-grade maturities stand at $239.1 billion.
In terms of instruments, conventional bonds dominate, with maturities of $317.6 billion over the next five years, compared with $190.5 billion for sukuk. Corporate bond maturities, at $173.4 billion, exceed government bond maturities of $144.2 billion.
By sector, banks and other financial services firms account for $210.4 billion in maturities through 2030, representing 79.9 percent of total corporate maturities and 41.4 percent of overall GCC maturities. The energy sector follows with $21.8 billion, or 8.3 percent, of corporate maturities, while utilities and industrials account for $13.6 billion and $5.4 billion, respectively.
Real estate maturities are concentrated mainly in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, at $11.2 billion and $4.3 billion, respectively, through 2030.
Issuances in 2025
Aggregate bond and sukuk issuances in the GCC reached $206.6 billion through the third week of December 2025, broadly unchanged from $206.8 billion in the same period a year earlier.
However, issuance patterns shifted markedly. Government issuances declined sharply to $77.9 billion in 2025, from $98.6 billion in 2024, while corporate issuances rose to a record $128.6 billion, up from $108.2 billion.
In terms of type of issuances, sukuk issuances witnessed a sharp decline during 2025, whereas bond issuances showed a healthy growth.
“Aggregate GCC bond issuances stood at $125.2 billion in 2025, the highest on record, compared to $106.2 billion during 2024, whereas sukuk issuances declined by 19.1 percent to reach $81.4 billion this year as compared to issuances of $100.6 Bn during 2024,” said Kamco Invest.
Despite an 18.3 percent decline, Saudi Arabia remained the region’s largest fixed-income issuer, with total issuance of $82.0 billion in 2025, down from $100.3 billion the previous year.
Issuances from Qatar fell 21.7 percent to $22.1 billion, while the UAE recorded modest growth, with total issuance rising to $64.9 billion from $63.4 billion. Kuwait posted the sharpest increase, with issuance surging to $20.5 billion from $2.6 billion in 2024 following the approval of its debt law.
Green issuances
Green-instrument issuance in the GCC rose sharply in 2025, though it remained below the record levels seen in 2023. Total green issuance reached $12.5 billion, up from $4.6 billion in 2024 but below $17.3 billion recorded in 2023.
The UAE led the region with $5.6 billion in green issuance, compared with $3.8 billion a year earlier. Saudi Arabia followed with $5.1 billion, after recording no green issuances in 2024.
Green sukuk are Shariah-compliant instruments designed to finance environmentally sustainable projects, including renewable energy, clean transportation and climate-resilient infrastructure.
Outlook
Kamco Invest expects higher issuance levels in 2026, particularly among GCC countries facing fiscal deficits. The UAE and Qatar are also projected to see elevated corporate issuance.
A potential decline in interest rates could further support issuance activity, especially early in the year, as borrowers seek to lock in lower funding costs.
“Maturity refinancing is expected to result in approximately $85.4 billion in issuances during the year, while government deficit financing led by lower average oil prices would also contribute to the overall trend during the rest of the year,” the report said.
Based on IMF forecasts, deficit financing could result in issuance of close to $60 billion in 2026, it added.
