More than 70% of U.S. firms operating in southern China consider relocation amid trade war.

U.S. companies operating in China believe they are suffering more from the trade dispute than firms from other countries.

This is why more than 70% of U.S. firms operating in southern China are considering delaying further investment there and moving some or all of their manufacturing to other countries as the trade war bites into profits.

But a China loss will not necessarily translate into a U.S. win, as according to the poll by the American Chamber of Commerce in South China (AmCham), which surveyed 219 companies, one-third from the manufacturing sector, 64% of the companies said they were considering relocating production lines to outside of China, but only 1% said they had any plans to establish manufacturing bases in North America.

The AmCham report continued explaining that “while more than 70% of the U.S. companies are considering delaying or cancelling investment in China, and relocation of some or all manufacturing out of China, only half of their Chinese counterparts share the same consideration”.

Harley Seyedin, president of AmCham South China, told Reuters that customers are slowing down orders or not placing them at all, and they could be holding back on placing orders until times are more certain or “it could very well be that they are shifting to other competitors who are willing to offer cheaper products, even sometimes at a loss, in order to get market share.”

Nearly 80% of the survey respondents said the tariffs have knocked their businesses, with U.S. tariffs having slightly more impact than the Chinese ones.

Around 85% of U.S. companies said they have suffered from the combined tariffs, compared with around 70% of their Chinese counterparts.