• Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Supplier Directory
  • SCB YouTube
  • About Us
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • Logout
  • My Profile
  • LOGISTICS
    • Air Cargo
    • All Logistics
    • Facility Location Planning
    • Freight Forwarding/Customs Brokerage
    • Global Gateways
    • Global Logistics
    • Last Mile Delivery
    • Logistics Outsourcing
    • LTL/Truckload Services
    • Ocean Transportation
    • Parcel & Express
    • Rail & Intermodal
    • Reverse Logistics
    • Service Parts Management
    • Transportation & Distribution
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • All Technology
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Cloud & On-Demand Systems
    • Data Management (Big Data/IoT/Blockchain)
    • ERP & Enterprise Systems
    • Forecasting & Demand Planning
    • Global Trade Management
    • Inventory Planning/ Optimization
    • Product Lifecycle Management
    • Robotics
    • Sales & Operations Planning
    • SC Finance & Revenue Management
    • SC Planning & Optimization
    • Supply Chain Visibility
    • Transportation Management
  • GENERAL SCM
    • Business Strategy Alignment
    • Customer Relationship Management
    • Education & Professional Development
    • Global Supply Chain Management
    • Global Trade & Economics
    • Green Energy
    • HR & Labor Management
    • Quality & Metrics
    • Regulation & Compliance
    • Sourcing/Procurement/SRM
    • SC Security & Risk Mgmt
    • Supply Chains in Crisis
    • Sustainability & Corporate Social Responsibility
  • WAREHOUSING
    • All Warehouse Services
    • Conveyors & Sortation
    • Lift Trucks & AGVs
    • Order Management & Fulfillment
    • Packaging
    • RFID, Barcode, Mobility & Voice
    • Warehouse Automation
    • Warehouse Management Systems
  • INDUSTRIES
    • Aerospace & Defense
    • Apparel
    • Automotive
    • Chemicals & Energy
    • Consumer Packaged Goods
    • E-Commerce/Omni-Channel
    • Food & Beverage
    • Healthcare
    • High-Tech/Electronics
    • Industrial Manufacturing
    • Pharmaceutical/Biotech
    • Retail
  • THINK TANK
  • WEBINARS
    • On-Demand Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Webinar Library
  • PODCASTS
  • WHITEPAPERS
  • VIDEOS
Home » Trump Versus Xi Battle Has More Suppliers Shifting From China

Trump Versus Xi Battle Has More Suppliers Shifting From China

Trump Versus Xi Battle Has More Suppliers Shifting From China
May 9, 2019
Bloomberg

While Chinese and American officials enter heated trade negotiations this week, companies that have built the technology industry’s global supply chain aren’t waiting to see how the talks turn out. In the latest example, Delta Electronics Inc. is joining a wave of key suppliers accelerating a shift of production away from China.

Delta, which makes components to help clients like Microsoft Corp. and Huawei Technologies Co. manage power and cooling for data centers to factories, is moving some production back to its home base of Taiwan and Thailand amid the threat of a trade war and U.S. security concerns. It’s also taking the unusual step of building three to four plants in India, responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Make-in-India program.

U.S. President Donald Trump threw trade negotiations into chaos this week with a threat of higher tariffs on Chinese goods as soon as Friday, accusing Beijing of backpedaling on concessions. With thousands of critical suppliers caught in the crossfire, a growing number are diversifying beyond China to places like Southeast Asia and India.

Delta’s Chief Executive Officer Ping Cheng concedes that India’s technology ecosystem remains far less developed than its giant Asian neighbor’s. But he is keen to add one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies to a production chain that now stretches from Europe to the U.S., via a subsidiary it recently secured a controlling stake in.

“The products will be mainly for the domestic Indian market,” Cheng said in an interview last week. “The trend of making in India is inevitable as it’s a big market. But it remains to be seen whether the supply chain locally will in future be complete and used for exports.”

Delta is one of a raft of Taiwanese component makers that form key links in a global supply chain serving the world’s largest tech names. The prospect of sky-high tariffs is prompting the manufacturing powerhouses behind the world’s electronics to scour the globe for alternatives beyond China. That’s threatening to splinter a decades-old supply chain, in which Taiwanese giants operate sprawling Chinese factories to assemble devices that are then sold by the likes of Apple Inc., HP and Dell under their own brands.

“There is no knowing how U.S.-China tensions will play out,” said Gordon Sun, director of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research’s Macroeconomic Forecasting Center. Rising labor costs and Beijing’s efforts to foster domestic businesses are also encouraging diversification, he added. “Even if there is a trade deal, Taiwanese companies will continue to diversify their production bases.”

Escalating tensions with the U.S. and fears about the security of Chinese-made hardware — particularly in networked and connected products — are also prompting certain customers to request a shift away from the world’s second largest economy, Cheng said.

“Some clients worry that their information may be leaked through backdoors,” he said without elaborating. “We’re moving also due to higher taxes, and we will ask clients to split costs with us, as the expense will increase.”

For many Taiwanese manufacturers, that entails a migration back home. Delta has announced NT$13.2bnn ($427m) in home investments over the coming three years, and Cheng said his company is looking to hire more than 7,000 engineers over the next half-decade. The aim is to reduce its reliance on China to about 60 percent of its products, versus 70 to 73 percent currently, though Cheng said in the long term the company will continue to invest in China and revenue from that country will continue to grow.

“Our production used to be in China mostly. With a trade war happening, we realized it’s too concentrated,” he said.

    RELATED CONTENT

    RELATED VIDEOS

    Logistics Global Logistics Business Strategy Alignment Global Supply Chain Management Global Trade & Economics High-Tech/Electronics Industrial Manufacturing
    KEYWORDS Asia Pacific Business Strategy Alignment China Global Logistics Global Supply Chain Management Global Trade & Economics High-Tech/Electronics Industrial Manufacturing
    • Related Articles

      An Unexpected Winner From Trump's Trade War: Knockoff Bags From China

      Trump Plans Crackdown on Fentanyl Shipments From China, Others

      More Positive Indicators From China

    • Related Directories

      ProcureAbility

    Bloomberg

    U.S. Exports to Cuba Jump as Fuel, Cars and Food Get Past Trump’s Blockade

    More from this author

    Subscribe to our Daily Newsletter!

    Timely, incisive articles delivered directly to your inbox.

    Featured Product

    Popular Stories

    • A LARGE CYLINDRICAL OBJECT SHRINK-WRAPPED IN WHITE PLASTIC IS LOWERED BY CRANE ONTO A FLAT BED TRUCK ON A DOCK

      AI Boom Has European Buyers Paying Extra to Secure Gas Turbines

      Technology
    • 016_ai_and_data_transformation_in_distribution_v1-(540p).png

      Watch: AI and Data Transformation in Distribution

      Artificial Intelligence
    • DOMINO EFFECT FINANCIAL MONEY KNOCK-ON CONSEQUENCES iStock-Devrimb-1500012566.jpg

      Podcast | The Tariff Conundrum for Supply Chains: Pass Along, or Absorb?

      Supply Chain Finance & Revenue Management
    • A GROUP OF NINE PEOPLE STAND SMILING IN A ROW IN THE SUNSHINE BENEATH A SIGN SAYING PORT OF LOS ANGELES

      Transportation Secretary Announces American Supply Chain Sovereignty Initiative

      Global Gateways
    • Ebook_TransformingSupplyChain_thumbnail.jpg

      Transforming Your Supply Chain From Cost Center to Growth Driver

      Forecasting & Demand Planning

    Digital Edition

    2026 esg cover main scb q2 2026 cover

    SupplyChainBrain 2026 ESG Guide: ESG — The Supply Chain’s Biggest Secret

    VIEW THE LATEST ISSUE

    Case Studies

    • Recycled Tagging Fasteners: Small Changes Make a Big Impact

    • A GRAPHIC SHOWING MULTIPLE FORMS OF SHIPPING, WITH A HUMAN STANDING AT THE CENTER, TOUCHING A SYMBOLIC MAP OF THE WORLD

      Enhancing High-Value Electronics Shipment Security with Tive's Real-Time Tracking

    • A GRAPHIC OF INTERLACING HONEYCOMBED ELEMENTS REPRESENTING GLOBAL BUSINESS TRANSACTIONS

      Moving Robots Site-to-Site

    • JLL Finds Perfect Warehouse Location, Leading to $15M Grant for Startup

    • Robots Speed Fulfillment to Help Apparel Company Scale for Growth

    Visit Our Sponsors

    4flow Arkieva Blue Yonder
    Carton Cloud CoEnterprise Dassault
    Duravant E2Open General Logistics Systems
    Hy-Tek iGPS Korber
    Lyngsoe Procurability Quinyx
    SAP Sikick Systech
    S&P Global Mobility TADA TransImpact
    US Bank Werner Enterprises WSI
    • More From SCB
      • Featured Content
      • Video Library
      • Think Tank Blog
      • SupplyChainBrain Podcast
      • Whitepapers
      • On-Demand Webinars
      • Upcoming Webinars
    • Digital Offerings
      • Digital Issue
      • Subscribe
      • Manage Email Preferences
      • Newsletters
    • Resources
      • Events Calendar
      • 2026 Event Coverage
      • SCB's Great Supply Chain Partners
      • Supplier Directory
      • Case Study Showcase
      • Supply Chain Innovation Awards
      • 100 Great Partners Form
    • SCB Corporate
      • Advertise on SCB.COM
      • About Us
      • Privacy Policy
      • Contact Us
      • Data Sharing Opt-Out

    All content copyright ©2026 Keller International Publishing Corp All rights reserved. No reproduction, transmission or display is permitted without the written permissions of Keller International Publishing Corp

    Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing