Bloomberg news agency said that the new standard customs duties imposed by US President Donald Trump may lead to a threat to one of the most profitable aspects of the commercial relationship between China and the United States and it is related to the services sector, which has always been a surplus for the Americans.
In 2024, the United States achieved a surplus of 32 billion dollars of service exports to China, which included education, tourism, and recreational services.
The value of US services exports globally reached about 300 billion dollars. With the escalation of trade tensions, Bloomberg indicates that China has begun to target this aspect as part of its revenge procedures.
Education at the top of the list
Bloomberg notes that about a third of US services exports to China relate to education, specifically through tuition fees and living expenses for about 270,000 Chinese students studying in American universities, according to the data of the International Education Institute.
Despite the number of pre -pandemic levels (it was more than 370,000), China remains second after India in terms of international students in the United States.
In this context, the Chinese Ministry of Education issued a warning this week of the security risks associated with the study in some American states, after the passage of a new law in Ohio.
Tourism .. a threatened resource
Tourism is a major source of American income from China, as the number of Chinese tourists heading to the United States exceeds the number of Americans traveling to China.
However, tourism revenues are still lower than pre -pandemic levels, and pressure may increase due to the increasing political tensions, as Beijing warned its citizens early week against traveling to the United States.
Decline in the financial services sector
In 2023, US banks and insurance companies recorded a $ 2.5 billion surplus in their dealings with China, a decrease from a peak of $ 4.3 billion in 2019.
Bloomberg said that the enthusiasm that accompanied China’s openness to foreign financial institutions a few years ago has declined, as most American banks today focus on reducing costs and avoiding any possible dangers.
Computing and technology services
In the field of computing services, the United States continues to achieve a trade surplus with China. American companies such as Microsoft and Amazon exported about $ 1.6 billion of software and cloud computing services more than they imported from China in 2023, according to the latest data available.
Entertainment in the penalties
Although the American surplus continued to export books, movies and series to China, the gap decreased in 2023 to its lowest level in 4 years, due to a decrease in American exports and an increase in Chinese imports.
According to Bloomberg, the Chinese government announced this week that it would “reduce” the number of Hollywood films allowed in Chinese theaters, in a move understood as a direct response to the new American customs duties.
The Chinese Film Administration said that “the wrong procedures from the US government in the misuse of customs duties against China will inevitably lead to a decline in the preference of the local audience of American films.”
This step has led to a decrease in the shares of major entertainment companies such as Disney, Warner Bruce Discovery and Parapaont Global.
Ignore to discuss services
While commercial policy discussions in Washington focus on the United States’ inability to goods with China, Prime Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong said this week that the aspect of services in the commercial relationship “is completely ignorant” in this wider discussion.
In light of the continued escalation, Bloomberg believes that the Chinese focus on services may constitute a new front in the trade conflict, and increases pressure on vital sectors on which American companies relied heavily on achieving surpluses.
