Bilateral trade in goods between the US and China climbed to a record in 2022, amid rising tensions between the two countries.
It is a reminder that consumers and companies in the world’s two biggest economies remain deeply connected, while their governments diverge on a range of economic and political issues. Total merchandise trade between the two countries rose to $690.6 billion last year, exceeding the record set in 2018, Bloomberg reported, citing the latest US Commerce Department data showed on Tuesday. The data is not adjusted for inflation.
US trade deficit with China
The annual goods-trade deficit with China widened 8 percent to $382.9 billion, the biggest on record after the $419.4 billion shortfall in 2018.
The deepening trade ties between the countries risk being challenged by the widening split between Washington and Beijing.
They have clashed on issues including human rights, trade and competition for technology and markets.
The data also comes at a particularly low point between the two amid the shooting down last week of an alleged Chinese spy balloon over US territory.
Washington is pressing ahead with plans to curb China’s access to sensitive semiconductor technology and is trying to get countries it considers allies to do the same.
It is also working to lessen US reliance on China for merchandise.
Washington is encouraging Western companies to invest in what Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has termed “trusted trading partners” such as India, in a process known as friendshoring.
The value of merchandise exports to China climbed to an all-time high of $153.8 billion, while imports increased to $536.8 billion, just under the record set in 2018.
“It shows that consumers have minds of their own,” said Mr William Reinsch, who served as a top Commerce official in the Clinton administration. He is now a senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.
“At the market level, we’re still doing a lot of business, despite the efforts of both governments. The macro relationship hasn’t changed that much; we’re still trading a lot.”
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