Tariff uncertainty engulfs annual trade show in Hong Kong

An annual global trade fair has kicked off in Hong Kong with no shortage of fanfare – featuring robots flexing, dazzling new products and excited crowds packing the convention halls.

An annual global trade fair has kicked off in Hong Kong with no shortage of fanfare – featuring robots flexing, dazzling new products and excited crowds packing the convention halls. But uncertainty over how the US-China tariff war may pan out cast a shadow over what is typically an upbeat trade show for exhibitors, mostly manufacturers from China plying their wares. In a quickly escalating trade dispute, US President Donald Trump has hiked tariffs on Chinese imports to a staggering 145%. For its part, China has retaliated by imposing a broad-based 125% levy on American goods. The brinkmanship between the world’s largest two economies is starting to jeopardize the global economy, according to several exhibitors at the Global Sources Hong Kong show, which began on Friday. It’s a tough time for Liu Tongyong, a sales manager for a company based in south China’s industrial heartland that makes keyboards and computer mice. His firm, Gaoxd Precision Industry, is based in the manufacturing hub of Dongguan and has benefited from the interlinked trade between the US and China. But the escalating trade war is hitting the firm hard. On Friday, a US Customs and Border Protection notice indicated that some electronic products, including smartphones and semiconductors imported to the US would be exempt from Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs. The White House later clarified that the exemptions are temporary. But the keyboards and mice Gaoxd makes do not appear to be covered by the exemptions. At Gaoxd, sales have plunged around 20% since the beginning of this year owing to the uncertain economic outlook caused by the tariff war, Liu told CNN.