In a commentary on U.S. tariff policy, SMU Associate Professor of Operations Management Fang Xin opined that U.S President Donald Trump's efforts to "reshore" supply chains to the U.S. are unlikely to succeed. Instead, these policies may accelerate the global reshuffling and regional diversification of supply chains. Rather than relocating operations back to a high-cost, industrially underdeveloped, and uncertain U.S. market, multinational corporations are more likely to spread their operations across emerging markets to reduce trade war risks. Assoc Prof Fang believes that with the intensification of the trade war – particularly as Mr Trump suspends reciprocal tariffs for countries other than China –regions such as ASEAN, South Asia, and Latin America will increasingly absorb China’s manufacturing capacity and serve as alternative suppliers for the U.S. market.
