China owns outright or has majority control in 17 overseas ports globally, according to recent estimates. However, its broader footprint is much larger with 129 port projects worldwide that involve Chinese investment, construction, or operational control. 115 of these are active, spanning every continent except Antarctica, which is next.
It’s been more than a little concerning to the Trump Administration as these deposits have everything to do with international security as they are needed in the production of the very high-end microchips. So, now that it has been discovered that Greenland apparently has one of the largest deposits on the planet, Trump has stated that we will have Greenland, one way or another. While he hasn’t explicitly committed to military action, he’s made it clear that he won’t rule it out.
Just look at the current landscape of how China has been innovating through various trade related sanctions, bans, and tariffs. Necessity has always been the mother of invention, and in the case of China and the never-ending western pressure it has also been the catalyst in many cases for that which ultimately drives them to create and overcome.
Here we are. August 1st, 2025, and the media is now publishing what facts they have on the various trade deals as well as those that have yet to come to fruition, in addition to the new announcement of imposed global tariffs which range anywhere from 10% to 41%, Yes, the trade world is on fire from a U.S. perspective. CNN, my “go-to” is reporting that the Trump Administration is imposing tariffs on over 60 countries around the globe.
If I heard it once, I’ve heard it a thousand times, China is the sourcing capital of the world. I’ve also repeated this statement at least 400+ times in many conversations over the years regarding global trade. China, it’s also where the global market goes for rare earth minerals, among thousands of other necessary elements for a veritable plethora of life’s essential things.
As a broad stroke of tariffs are now levied against various countries to close the trade deficit gap, without truly examining the reason(s) for the imbalance, there will most likely be automatic retaliatory tariffs in a lose-lose situation. The White House stated that currently 50 countries are on the phone with the President, but that is hard to confirm. US consumers will ultimately pay the price, as well as SME’s.
Prior to the origination of the plans for the Panama Canal vessels of trade had few options of getting goods from Europe and Asia to N. America. One was to sail around the southern tip of South America (Cape Horn) adding months to the journey if they were lucky enough to make it through what is known as one of the most hazardous shipping routes in the world, where it’s estimated that over 800 ships have been lost over the last couple of centuries of trade.
In 2024, China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) saw significant financial engagement. Preliminary data indicates that China invested approximately $92.4 billion in various projects across the 149 countries involved in the BRI. China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) encompasses numerous large-scale infrastructure projects across the globe.
As of now, the start of 2025, there are several Chinese industrial parks in Mexico, with notable examples including the Hofusan Industrial Park near Monterrey, which hosts manufacturing plants for ten Chinese companies. When one is considering how to navigate the U.S. import tariffs, for many Chinese manufacturers, pulling the trigger on nearshoring is the right move.
After 25 years of negotiations, the European Union and the Southern Common Market, commonly known as Mercosur, comprised of Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, signed a free trade agreement. I think this, among many more regional deals to come was suddenly expedited due to the anticipated land mines with the upcoming Trump 2.0 administration and trade policy regarding tariffs for all.