Decoupling, De-risking, and the Great U.S.-China Disconnect, with Supply Chain Expert Cameron Johnson

This week on Sinica in a show taped live at China Crossroads, Shanghai's premier event series, I'm joined by my good friend Cameron Johnson, who is on the governing board of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, specializes professionally in supply chains in China, and teaches at NYU Shanghai.

4:20 – What makes up a supply chain ecosystem, and why it is difficult to build out 

8:39 – A brief history of decoupling, the warning signs, and whether it matters “who shot first” 

16:43 – Personal protective equipment (PPE) manufacturing in America, the lessons we (should have) learned, and Washington’s response

25:13 – EVs and batteries: manufacturing in America, and what it looks like on the ground in China 

30:46 – The semiconductor industry 

34:24 – “China Week” in Congress, and the different responses of GOP versus Democratic congressmen 

38:36 – De-risking as globalization 2.0

42:21 – Cameron’s predictions on the effects of the [upcoming] U.S. elections 

44:10 – Inside Chinese factories 

47:44 – American shortfalls in manufacturing 

50:21 – The importance of seeing China’s competitive markets and ecosystem clusters for oneself 

53:09 – Cameron’s advice for the next U.S. administration 

Recommendations: 

Cameron: Gōngyìng liàn gōngfáng zhàn 《供应链攻防战》 (Supply Chain Offensive and Defense War) by Lin Xueping; No Trade is Free: Changing Course, Taking on China, and Helping America’s Workers by Robert Lighthizer 

Kaiser: The Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus 

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