A growing number of Chinese companies are adopting a crafty way to evade US President Donald Trump's tariffs: remove the "Made in China" label by shifting production to countries such as Vietnam, Serbia and Mexico.
The world's two largest economies have been locked in a months-long trade fight after Trump imposed 25 percent customs duties on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods this summer, triggering a swift tit-for-tat response from Beijing.
Chinese factories making everything from bikes to tyres, plastics and textiles are moving assembly lines abroad to skirt higher customs taxes on their exports to the United States and elsewhere, according to public filings.
Hl Corp, a Shenzhen-listed bike parts maker, made clear to investors last month that tariffs were in mind when it decided to move production to Vietnam.
The factory will "reduce and evade" the impact of tariffs, management wrote, noting Trump hit e-bikes in August, with new border taxes planned for bicycles and their parts. Trump warned last week those tariffs - targeting $200 billion in Chineseimports - could come "very soon".
---AFP, Beijing
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