“Deglobalization” has entered the narrative zeitgeist. But what’s happening on the ground? This weekly series seeks to answer that question with a round-up of deglobalization developments from the week that’s done.
1. Senator Coons declared that the “intersection of the Chips and Science Act, the infrastructure bill, and the Inflation Reduction Act is driving a dramatic reshoring or onshoring of advanced manufacturing in the United States.”
2. Levi Strauss CEO Chip Bergh pointed to the value of moving production close to the US: “The closer our supply chain is to the market, the more agile we can be and the more responsive we can be.”
3. Heads of seven of the world’s largest semiconductor makers met with Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida to lay out plans to increase manufacturing and tech partnerships in Japan – part of Western allies’ efforts to reshape the global chip supply chain in response to tensions with China.
4. General Electric, General Motors, Boeing, and Nike are disclosing in financial filings that their China-linked supply chains pose business risks as geopolitical tensions and investor pressure grow.
5. Ford plans to cut some 1,300 jobs in China as its sales decline in the country – squeezed by local, State-supported competitors.
6. From Bloomberg: “Wall Street’s hopes of windfall profits from [China’s] $60 trillion market are taking a hit due to geopolitics and a souring business climate: Goldman and Morgan Stanley are scaling back expansion plans; Citi and JPMorgan have cut their exposure.
7. Two Nasdaq-listed online brokerages – Futu Holdings and Up Fintech Holding — that let Chinese citizens invest overseas are cutting their presence in China as Beijing tightens control on private firms, capital flows, and data flows.
8. The Economist asks “is Chinese power about to peak?” The question responds to two compounding forces: Bipartisan decisions by the US to restrict Chinese technology development and, especially, Beijing’s own decisions – to crack down on its global tech companies, embrace aggressive and unpredictable COVID policies, and bankroll Russia’s invasion of Russia.
9. G-7 leaders issued a communiqué that included a nine-point “derisking” plan, intended to reduce the risks posed by China while maintaining members’ economic ties.
(Photo by Pexabay/Pexels)