How does Trump's tariff war affect cnc manufacturing in China?

Hello, everybody. This is HANBS, a company that is passionate about sharing content about cnc lathe.

 

In terms of news, the most recent news is definitely about Trump's drastic increase in import tariffs for various countries. As a manufacturer of cnc lathe engaged in foreign trade, I still feel that we should look at this issue from some professional point of view.

 

So Trump's increase in tariffs for our industry have an impact? That is certainly there ah, the increase in tariffs is not only on the United States country residents have a relatively large impact, but also on other want to cooperate with the United States of America's enterprises have a considerable impact.

 

First, the policy background: a new round of escalation of trade friction between the United States and China

At the end of 2024, the U.S. government once again expanded the list of tariffs on Chinese manufactured goods on the grounds of “protecting the security of key manufacturing industries”, covering CNC machine tools, high-precision parts, robots and other intelligent manufacturing equipment, and CNC lathes, as the core metal processing equipment, bear the brunt. CNC lathes, as the core metal processing equipment, are the first to bear the brunt, and the tariff rate has been raised from the original 10% to a maximum of 25%, with the intention of curbing the global expansion trend of high-end Chinese manufacturing. From this time, a shock to the cnc industry has been expanding. The U.S. believes that China “has taken away the job of not having done the manufacturing industry. Hope that by raising tariffs, stimulate investment in the local manufacturing industry, reduce the dependence of U.S. enterprises on China's supply chain, accelerate the pace of “decoupling” and so on.

 

Second, the export situation is under pressure: China's CNC lathe exports to the United States face challenges

1. Export data is clearly a downward trend

According to China Customs data show that in 2024 China's total exports to the United States cnc lathe fell 22.7% year-on-year, of which high-end CNC lathes (selling price of more than $ 5) fell more than 30% year-on-year, small and medium-sized enterprises have been a greater impact.

2. Rising costs, price advantage is exploited

In 2025, Trump has raised import tariffs on Chinese goods three times, totaling 54%, which makes China's exports of low-end cnc lathe in the U.S. market for sales of market prices are generally higher than Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan and other places of the same product, so that the original “price-performance ratio” advantage no longer exists, the customer's Orders to other countries.

3. Market structure is changing

The proportion of the U.S. market in China's CNC lathe export structure, from 18% in 2019 to less than 9% in 2024. And Southeast Asia, Middle East and Africa markets become new growth points.

 

Fourth, the enterprise response strategy

1. Market diversification: looking for “non-American” growth curve

Leading enterprises such as Dalian machine tools, Ningbo Haitian is accelerating the development of the “Belt and Road” along the market, Vietnam, India, Turkey, Mexico has become a key target.

2. Localized production and service

Some companies have begun to set up assembly plants in Mexico, through the “near-shore manufacturing” mode to enter the American market, bypassing tariff barriers.

3. From “cost-effective” to “technology leadership”

Shift the focus of development from low-end lathes to composite processing machines, five-axis linkage, high-precision small machine tools and other fields, to enhance the technical barriers and bargaining power.

4. Accelerate domestic substitution and breakthrough of core components

Reduce dependence on the U.S., Germany and Japan by tackling core technologies such as control system, spindle unit, turret and electric spindle, and build an independent and controllable technology system.

 

Fifth, the future outlook: in danger, where is China's manufacturing?

Although the United States imposed tariffs on China's CNC lathe industry in the short term constitutes a substantial blow, but in the long run, it will also become an opportunity to force the transformation and upgrading of Chinese manufacturing:

Promote industry concentration and eliminate inefficient production capacity;

Incentives for enterprises to increase investment in research and development, to achieve “from manufacturing to manufacturing” of the leap;

Promote China's machine tool industry from “world factory” to “technology exporter”.

 

Conclusion

In fact, the United States is not only for China to realize the increase in tariffs, but for many countries have increased tariffs. China-US trade friction has become a “new normal”, China CNC lathe enterprises only in the uncertainty to find certainty, in the pressure to seek breakthroughs, in order to be invincible in the international competition. The winners in the future will be those enterprises that really have the right to speak of technology and globalization strategy.