BEIJING - Sky-high tariffs imposed on China by US President Donald Trump have triggered a slump in factory orders, manufacturers told AFP this week -- with some fearing business may never return.
China's vast southern province of Guangdong, crisscrossed with factories making everything from clothing to electronics, has long been the country's biggest manufacturing hub.
For decades, it has churned out products for the insatiable American consumer base, offering low prices few can compete with and serving as a key driver in China's meteoric rise to global economic superpower status.
But Trump's drive to bring manufacturing back to the United States and the launch of a brutal trade war with China now threaten to upend that -- adding to the country's already grim economic outlook.
Businesspeople from across the globe convened for the opening phase of the Canton Fair -- a colossal trade show held every spring and autumn.
The event serves as an opportunity for merchants from around the world to meet face-to-face with Chinese manufacturers and assess their products up close, establishing new supply arrangements or shoring up old contacts.
But buyers from the United States this year were few and far between.
Factories visited by AFP this week in Guangdong were buzzing with activity as workers sat at production lines, the air filled with the clanging and whirring of conveyor belts.
Many manufacturers admitted the heightened trade war with the United States will cause turbulence for businesses.
But they hoped that would encourage them to find new customers in other countries.
The tariffs are also likely to cause pain among American consumers, with US Federal Reserve boss Jerome Powell warning this week that they may increase inflation in the country.
As for China's reciprocal tariffs on US goods, Lin said she was not concerned about it affecting her lifestyle -- she is used to buying things on local e-commerce platforms from Chinese manufacturers.