China paid more than US$40 billion for goods imported from the US in 2005.
Over the same period, China received some $245 billion for products exported to the US.
Simply put, six times more money flows into China from the US for Chinese exports each year than flows out for US imports.
The lists below give us perspective on what products that China imported from and exported to the US in 2005. Amounts shown are in $US million.
Top Imports into China from US
- Electrical machinery & equipment = $6,851
- Power generation equipment = $6,357
- Air & spacecraft = $4,382
- Optics & medical equipment = $2,397
- Oil seeds & fruits = $2,289
- Plastics = $2,259
- Chemicals = $1,962
- Iron & Steel = $1,865
- Cotton = $1,411
- Pulp & paperboard = $992
Note that the above list doesn't mention automotive imports into China. As we pointed out in our article China's Auto Exports Surge, China's robust automotive manufacturing industry can more than meet domestic demand for new vehicles.
And The Winners Are...
The above list also shows that China depends on the US for air and spacecraft equipment. US companies like Boeing do have a competitive advantage in trade with China.
However, the dominance of China's exports becomes clear after perusing the higher dollar amounts for product categories in the list below.
Top Exports from China to the US
- Electrical machinery & equipment = $53,010
- Power generation equipment = $52,738
- Toys & games = $19,141
- Furniture = $17,054
- Apparel = $16,808
- Footwear = $12,721
- Iron & Steel = $7,415
- Plastics = $6,640
- Leather & Travel Goods = $6,259
- Vehicles & parts (not rail) = $4,208
Some may argue that the US sells higher-end electrical products and more advanced power generation equipment. We prefer to see more scientific proof for such generalizations.
At the end of the day, China has $240 billion more each year flowing into its increasingly deep pockets than does the US. Since money is the name of the game, the People's Republic must be seen as dominating trade with the Americans.
Given its superlative cashflow, the question is how much further ahead will China be in ten years?
Sources: US Int. Trade Commission, US Dept. of Commerce, US Bureau of the Census
Next: China Trade Dwarfs US: Growth
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