China exporters squeezed
- China's exporters are seeing weaker overseas orders and rising logistics costs after the Iran war disrupted trade routes. - Sellers in southern China wholesale hubs are openly hoping Trump's upcoming visit will bring tariff relief. - Investors note Iran–US talks but the combined shock of war and tariffs is raising costs and business uncertainty (bbc.com) (france24.com) (cnbc.com).
China’s exporters are getting hit from both sides: overseas orders are softening, and the Iran war has made shipping and energy more expensive. (bbc.com) In March, China’s exports rose 2.5% from a year earlier, down sharply from 21.8% growth in January and February, as the war pushed up energy and logistics costs and darkened demand. China’s first-quarter gross domestic product still grew 5%, but economists told Reuters the outlook for the rest of 2026 has weakened. (cnbc.com 1) (cnbc.com 2) (money.usnews.com) At the Canton Fair in Guangzhou on April 17, factory owners told Reuters that raw-material and transport costs had jumped after the war began. One plastics exporter, Shao Haixia, said input costs were up 20% and foreign buyers were resisting price increases. (money.usnews.com) The pressure is especially visible in Guangdong, the manufacturing province that sends huge volumes of clothes, shoes, appliances and electronics abroad. In southern wholesale markets on April 23, sellers said they were hoping Donald Trump’s upcoming visit would bring tariff relief after U.S. duties on some Chinese goods climbed as high as 145%. (france24.com) The trade shock is colliding with a shipping shock. Reuters and other outlets have reported that the war around Iran disrupted routes tied to the Strait of Hormuz, raising freight rates, lifting fuel costs and forcing logistics firms to scramble for alternatives. (bbc.com) (scmp.com) (abc.net.au) Investors have focused this week on Trump’s comments that he expects a “great deal” with Iran and on his extension of the ceasefire, but markets are still treating the conflict as unresolved. Asia-Pacific stocks opened lower on April 23 even as U.S. futures rose after the ceasefire extension. (cnbc.com) (bloomberg.com) For exporters in China, that leaves two variables they cannot control: whether shipping lanes stay open and whether Washington eases tariffs. In Guangzhou’s markets, sellers are still moving bags of goods by hand, but many are waiting for policy news before they can guess what the next order book will look like. (france24.com) (bbc.com)
