Chu Tak Wong, president of auto glass giant Fuyao Glass, bought a vacant GM manufacturing plant in Moraine, Ohio, in 2014.
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Chinese investments in the United States have declined significantly since Donald Trump's first term. Analysts say this trend is unlikely to reverse with Trump's return to the White House.
Trump He has He threatened to impose additional customs duties on Chinese goods Shortly after his inauguration on Monday, based on the United States' increasingly tough stance toward Beijing.
“This is probably the last thing Trump is thinking about, which is trying to incentivize (Chinese companies) to invest here,” said Rafiq Dosani, an economist at the US-based RAND Corporation think tank.
“There is an ideological mismatch,” he said in an interview earlier this month. “All the rhetoric is to keep China out of the United States and let its cheap products in.” But other than that, “don’t let them in.”
In the past few weeks, the Emirati real estate giant Damac pledged $20 billion To build data centers in the United States, while SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son announced… An investment of 100 billion dollars To develop artificial intelligence in the United States during Trump's four-year term.
Chinese investment deals in the United States have slowed significantly, according to the latest news American Enterprise Institute data. Only $860 million flowed into the United States in the first six months of 2024, after $1.66 billion in 2023. That's down sharply from $46.86 billion in 2017, when Trump began his first term.
At the peak, Chinese companies made high-profile acquisitions in the United States, such as buying a company Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York. But regulators on both sides halted the flow.
“Chinese investments in the United States have slowed significantly since Beijing tightened control over capital outflows in 2017, followed by a series of regulatory policies in the United States aimed at… Excluding investments in certain sectorsDanielle Goh, senior research analyst at Rhodium Group, said in an email:
In the “foreseeable future,” it does not expect Chinese investments in the United States to regain the peak levels seen during the period from 2016 to 2017. Goh noted that instead of acquisitions, Chinese companies have turned more to small joint ventures with American companies or investments in areas New, where the business is built from scratch.
For example, Chinese battery manufacturer EVE Energy is the technology partner with a 10% stake in the company Joint venture With the Accelera division of the American engine company Cummins, Daimler Truck and PACCAR. The companies announced in June 2024 that they had begun plans for a battery factory in Mississippi that would begin production in 2027 and create more than 2,000 jobs.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the US-China Chamber of Commerce has mostly helped Chinese e-commerce companies set up local offices, rather than setting up manufacturing companies, Siva Yam, president of the nonprofit, told CNBC.
“Most of these investments nowadays tend to be a little smaller, so they're not on the radar, and they're easier to approve,” he said, referring to regulators in both the United States and China. But he remained uncertain about whether Chinese companies could use investments to offset the impact of tariffs.
Individual US states are becoming increasingly wary of Chinese investment. Last spring, Politico reported More than 20 states New restrictions on land purchases by Chinese citizens and companies have been passed, or existing rules updated.
Last December, Chinese hackers targeted a government office that reviews foreign investments in the United States. CNN reportedQuoting American officials. This was part of a broader breach by the Treasury Department, which declined CNBC's request for comment.
Deal making strategy?
Trump indicated that tariffs may be used to force Chinese investment into the United States
In his acceptance speech for the Republican nomination, he said, “I will bring auto jobs back to our country, through the proper use of taxes, tariffs, and incentives, and I will not allow huge auto manufacturing plants to be built in Mexico and China.” Or other countries.”
“The way they will sell their products in America is: Built in AmericaAnd only in America. This will create tremendous job opportunities and wealth for our country,” he said, according to what NBC News reported.
Chinese battery giant CATL reportedly said in November that it would do so Build an American factory if Trump allows it. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Center for American Progress, an advocacy group, noted last December that during his first term, Trump removed the restrictions on Chinese telecommunications company ZTE – just days after the Chinese government and Chinese banks invested $1 billion in a Trump Organization theme park in Indonesia.
Trump's transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the ZTE deal or opportunities for Chinese companies to invest in the United States.
Derek Scissors, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, noted that even if Trump welcomes more Chinese investment, or imposes it through tariffs, the big investments are long-term processes that will not happen overnight.
Then there is the unpredictability of the president-elect's policies.
“Trump saying the United States is open to Chinese companies in 2025 is not a guarantee (even) for 2029,” he added.
