After Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, China blocks some imports (but not chips)

First modification: 03/08/2022 – 18:37

Beijing and Taipei may not have any diplomatic ties. However, the commercial ties between China and the small island that it claims as its own are multi-million dollar.

For this reason, the Chinese government targeted the economy to retaliate against Taiwan for Nancy Pelosi’s visit to the island nation on Tuesday, August 2, and It blocked imports of citrus and fish.

The adoption of this measure follows the blockade of imports of biscuits and other food products from more than 100 Taiwanese suppliers on Monday, before Pelosi’s visit, according to the ‘Global Times’ and other Chinese media.

However, citrus fruits such as fish and crackers are only a fraction of Taiwan’s total exports to mainland China. This market is mainly represented by the chips needed in Chinese factories that assemble smartphones and other electronic products.

The island of 24.5 million inhabitants plays a very important role in the semiconductor industry: it produces half of the world’s processor chips and has technology that the continent cannot match.

In fact, of the more than 300,000 million dollars in which binational trade is calculated, China buys about 104,000 million dollars in chips.

Meanwhile, chips are China’s biggest import at more than $400 billion a year, ahead of even crude oil. That concentration has fueled concern in the United States and Europe about relying too heavily on supplies that could be disrupted by conflict.

The United States Government is trying to expand its semiconductor production capacity at a national level, through millionaire subsidies that the Congress of that country has just approved.

With AP and EFE