A full-scale trade war with China and the US is in prospect after President Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs of more than 100% on Chinese goods imports from Wednesday 9 April.

China has said it will “fight to the end” rather than capitulate to what it sees as US coercion, and has already raised its own trade barriers against the US in response.

What does this escalating trade conflict mean for the world economy?

How much trade do they do?
The trade in goods between the two economic powers added up to around $585bn (£429bn) last year.

Though the US imported far more from China ($440bn) than China imported from America ($145bn).

That left the US running a trade deficit with China – the difference between what it imports and exports – of $295bn in 2024. That’s a considerable trade deficit, equivalent to around 1% of the US economy.

How might this affect other countries?
The US and China together account for such a large share of the global economy, around 43% this year according to the International Monetary Fund.

If they were to engage in an all-out trade war that slowed their growth down, or even pushed them into recession, that would likely harm other countries’ economies in the form of slower global growth.

Global investment would also likely suffer.

There are other potential consequences.

China is the world’s biggest manufacturing nation and is producing far more than its population consumes domestically.

It is already running an almost $1tn goods surplus – meaning it is exporting more goods to the rest of the world than it imports.

And it is often producing those goods at below the true cost of production due to domestic subsidies and state financial support, like cheap loans, for favoured firms.

Steel is an example of this.

There is a risk that if such products were unable to enter the US, Chinese firms could seek to “dump” them abroad.
While that could be beneficial for some consumers, it could also undercut producers in countries threatening jobs and wages.

The lobby group UK Steel has warned of the danger of excess steel potentially being redirected to the UK market.

The spillover impacts of an all-out China-US trade war would be felt globally, and most economists judge that the impact would be highly negative.

Source: BBC

Cambodia has very attractive gross rental yields. In Q1 2025, gross rental yields for apartments ranged from 7.13% to 8.16%, with a national average of 7.4%, according to a recent study conducted by the Global Property Guide.

By major areas:

• In Phnom Penh, apartments offer rental yields ranging from 5.01% to 8.5% in Q1 2025, with a city average of 6.96%.

• In Kep and Kampot, gross rental yields ranged from 6.6% to 8.79% in Q1 2025, with an area average of 7.88%.

• In Chroy Changvar, apartments earn rental yields from 5.35% to 7.56%, with an area average of 6.82%.

• In Koh Rong and Koh Rong Samloem, gross rental yields ranged from 5.74% to 7.82%, with an area average of 7.11%.

This was supported by Invest Asian, noting that rental yields in Phnom Penh, especially for older shophouse apartments, is the second highest in Asia next to Jakarta, at above 6%.

“Cambodia’s economic growth is equally impressive as their rental yields. Like many other frontier markets, Cambodia’s record of avoiding recessions is strong. They skipped the tech-bubble of the 2000s along with the 2008 crisis,” said Invest Asian.

Source: Global Property Guide

The number of vessels that transited the Panama Canal, the world’s second-busiest waterway, fell to an average of 33.7 per day in March for a total of 1,045 ships that month, according to a bulletin on Thursday by its administrative authority.

In February, an average of 34.8 vessels per day crossed the waterway, an increase from 32.6 per day in January, but still below the maximum number of ships authorized.

Transits this year have remained below the maximum of 36 vessels allowed to pass per day since the waterway lifted drought-related restrictions in the third quarter last year, despite lower fees. Transit fees in Panama this year have been 15% below last year’s levels, according to figures from its authority.

A severe drought between late 2023 and early 2024 forced the waterway that connects the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to impose passage restrictions that prompted long waiting lines and higher transit fees.

The fees have been closely monitored since U.S. President Donald Trump complained about them earlier this year, adding that Washington would take over the canal if it determines that the presence of firms from China and Hong Kong near the waterway constitutes a security risk.

In late March, the canal’s authority announced it would offer a net-zero weekly passage slot starting in October for dual-fuel vessels operating at low carbon intensity. The plan is part of an initiative to reward and encourage investments in energy efficiency and low-carbon fuels.

Source: Reuters

Premium office rents in HCMC reached a five-year high of US$67 per square meter on average last year after rising by 2.2% from 2023.

Across all grades (affordable, mid-range and premium), the average rent rose by 1.6% to $36, according to property consultancy JLL Vietnam.

Data from market researcher Knight Frank confirms the rising trend, showing prime office rents grew by 3% last year to $61.

Occupancy rates in new office buildings were 88-90%, it said.

This year HCMC is expected to have around 71,000 square meters of office space for lease – a relatively modest amount that is likely to be fully absorbed in the short term.

Trang Bui, CEO of property services firm Cushman & Wakefield, said office rentals in HCMC are likely to rise by 5% this year, driven by active office expansion.

The two new urban areas, Thu Thiem and Phu My Hung, are set to become new office hubs.

From 2026 the market is expected to stabilize, with growth potentially slowing to 0.4-0.5% per year. Demand for office space will continue to come from key industries such as information technology, banking, manufacturing, insurance, and logistics, she added.

Source: Vnexpress