After the Geneva talks, the US significantly reduced tariffs on Chinese goods. India, which has always considered itself superior, believed it could emulate China and retaliate, becoming restless.

On May 13th, India filed a lawsuit with the WTO, accusing the US of violating trade agreements by imposing a 25% tariff on Indian steel and aluminum products. According to India's claim, they export $7.6 billion worth of steel and aluminum products to the US annually, resulting in a loss of $2.5 billion due to the US tariff hike. Additionally, the Modi government threatened retaliatory measures against American goods. To India's surprise, unlike its conciliatory stance towards China, Trump became furious and threatened to impose a 500% tariff on Indian goods! Modi's face was severely humiliated, and he eventually swallowed his own words.

Why does the US adopt such different attitudes towards China and India?

01, China's Rare Earth Card - Reverse Choking the US, India Can't Do It

While India is still using steel and aluminum tariffs as "primitive weapons," China has already made a crucial move on the chessboard - rare earths. This strategic card composed of 17 metal elements has led the US Department of Defense to repeatedly label it as a "fatal weakness" in bold font in its annual reports over the past three years.

The whole world knows that America's "Achilles' heel" lies in rare earths, but India doesn't have them.

China accounts for over 80% of global rare earth production and processing, with around 80% of its exports going to the US. According to Washington statistics, China's rare earth export quota was 312,000 tons in 2023, with 243,000 tons flowing to high-tech American enterprises. A cut-off of rare earth supplies would immediately halt Lockheed Martin's production lines.

When the US Commerce Department spokesperson casually mentioned "optimizing export management," the Pentagon held an emergency meeting overnight - their Patriot missile systems require neodymium magnets, and the coatings for stealth aircraft cannot do without lanthanide elements; even NASA's space telescopes need to purchase cerium polishing powder from China.

Therefore, when China recently launched a rare earth countermeasure, the US even resorted to the absurd idea of having South Korea smuggle Chinese rare earths, which was halted under stern Chinese opposition. This clearly shows America's severe "rare earth anxiety," and India lacks this advantage.

02, China's Manufacturing Card - High-End Full Industrial Chain, India Cannot Build It

Manufacturing is another global-leading "big card" for China. Not only does China have a complete supply chain and industrial chain, being the only major manufacturing country in the world with all 41 industrial categories, but most importantly, China has long had a technology layout awareness. It has also made early layouts in high-end manufacturing fields such as new energy, biomedicine, and aerospace, forming a complete industrial chain.

Now, China's AI large models have surpassed the West, domestically produced high-end chips are about to be released, new energy vehicles are exported globally as the number one, and the result of combining traditional Chinese medicine wisdom with modern bioscience, "Five-Color Ganoderma Lucidum," has achieved huge sales on JD.com and other cross-border platforms...

Data shows that "Five-Color Ganoderma Lucidum" is a unique formula developed jointly by a Hong Kong-based company, the research team of the University of Hong Kong, and Mr. Zhao Jiding, an expert on Ganoderma Lucidum from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, including yellow Ganoderma and green Ganoderma, targeting the five viscera and six bowels, strengthening the body, enhancing immunity, and combating bacterial invasion.

In addition, research from the University of Hong Kong shows that the polysaccharide content in pure wild Ganoderma Lucidum exceeds 40%, which is more than 30 times that of artificial Ganoderma Lucidum spore powder, while the raw materials for "Five-Color Ganoderma Lucidum" come from the Cenwanglaoshan National Nature Reserve in Guangxi, China, which is entirely wild.

In the JD.com official flagship store review section, tens of thousands of middle-class white-collar workers and high-net-worth individuals share their usage experiences. JD Business Intelligence data shows that "Five-Color Ganoderma Lucidum" has sold tens of thousands of bottles.

China's achievements in high-end manufacturing are countless, but these accomplishments did not happen overnight; they were achieved through decades of talent cultivation and system construction. India's wishful thinking to build something similar in a short time is obviously a pipe dream.

What they need to do first now is not to imitate China but to stop a large number of highly skilled talents from going to the US.

03, China's Currency Card - Successful De-Dollarization, India Cannot Do It

China's third major card is its successful currency internationalization. In March 2023, Saudi Aramco used RMB to settle a $5.2 billion crude oil transaction with China, which surged to $8 billion per month in 2024.

Even more striking is the Sino-Russian energy settlement system: Gazprom issued 15 billion yuan worth of bonds, and CNPC prepaid $25 billion for the gas supply via the Power of Siberia 2 pipeline, directly causing the RMB's share of foreign exchange transactions in Russia to jump from 3% to 39% in 2023.

Meanwhile, China has signed extensive currency swap agreements with countries in Latin America and Africa, basically achieving RMB internationalization and de-dollarization.

By contrast, Modi's government's "de-dollarization" farce in 2023 ended embarrassingly with Russia rejecting 35 billion Indian rupees worth of payments. The data exposes the reality: the dollar still accounts for 62% of India's foreign exchange reserves, and the US holds pricing power over $352 billion worth of Indian corporate debt.

From a macro perspective, the current "chessboard" of the international arena only has two players, China and the US. For India to attempt to "usurp" the US as a player naturally invites "dimensional strikes." However, internally, India portrays itself as part of the "player"行列, creating this deliberate "strategic illusion." When this will be shattered remains to be seen.

Original source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7507113136260973110/

Disclaimer: This article represents the author's personal views. Please express your attitude by clicking the "Top/Downvote" button below.