Since Donald Trump won the 2024 U.S. presidential election and took office on January 20th of this year, he has changed America’s domestic politics and driven economic and political changes on a global scale. According to President Trump, this policy of making America strong again has re-established a “new world order” full of uncertainties for other countries and the world economy.
Now let’s briefly look at Trump’s economic election promises and this “new world order” both in U.S. and globally.
In 2024, the world’s top importing country was by far the U.S. The top three importing countries were:
- 1. U.S.: $2.49 trillion
- 2. China: $1.93 trillion
- 3. Germany: $1 – $1.07 trillion
Since Trump announced that he would increase tariffs before taking office, there was a wave of record imports in the first quarter of 2025, rising rapidly by 25–42% annually, reaching approximately $1 trillion, based on companies’ stockpiling strategy ahead of Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs that came into effect in early April.
In the second quarter of 2025, total U.S. imports decreased by 16.3% from $419.39 billion in March to $351 billion in April 2025. The tariff increases to 125% on imports, especially from countries such as China, Vietnam and Cambodia, created uncertainty among importers, causing orders to be delayed and import volumes to fall. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), imports are expected to decrease by 20% annually in the second half of the year.
Will Trump’s new tariffs be enough to make America strong again, or is a new world order centered in the East being established?
In 2024, the top three exporting countries were:
- 1. China: $3.96 trillion
- 2. U.S.: $3.06 trillion
- 3. Germany: $1.87 trillion
There are many reasons why China will become the world’s new superpower in trade wars: its huge production capacity worldwide, relatively low labor costs, a wide range of products from electronics to textiles, machinery to consumer goods, and its long-standing investments in ports, railways and air cargo infrastructure. All these reasons put China in a central position in the global supply chain.
China seems to have reached the capacity to lead the market not only with its goods production capacity but also with its shipyards in global maritime trade.
Accordingly, Chinese shipyards currently account for approximately 40-45% of the global shipbuilding market. The shipyards in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Guangdong, and Liaoning have a shipbuilding capacity of 40-45 million DWT. Another force multiplier in China’s competition with the U.S. is that, as of 2025, the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) of China possesses the largest active warship fleet in the world, holding a significant position in naval power.
The biggest obstacles for President Trump are that labor and production costs in the U.S. are much higher compared to low-cost countries such as China and India. The U.S. is dependent on foreign countries for many raw materials and intermediate products, especially electronics and rare earth elements. The complex and sometimes high customs duties applied by the U.S. can increase the costs of exporting companies or create trade disputes. On the other hand, the strength of the U.S. dollar causes U.S. products to become more expensive in international markets, which makes exports difficult.
In other words, the policy of creating stronger exports through weaker imports may not produce the expected effect on the U.S. economy in the short and medium term, and on the contrary, it could lead to a loss of power for the U.S. against its competitors. In the long run, export-oriented economies like China and India pose a risk of emerging as stronger players against the U.S. both economically and militarily, supported by technological breakthroughs powered by artificial intelligence.
Another center of power could emerge in the Middle East.
Turkey’s rapidly increasing military capacity, the availability of cheap labor in neighboring countries, and the fact that a large portion of the world’s energy and mineral resources are located in the Middle East may lead to the emergence of a completely new world order. The reason this scenario is becoming more relevant is the ongoing economic tensions between the U.S. and China, as well as the even more dangerous situation of these two major powers facing each other militarily in the Pacific.
In conclusion, Trump’s second term as U.S. president is being closely watched by countries around the world. His economic policies, relationships with neighboring countries, and trade and military alliances with NATO and E.U. countries will undoubtedly have a profound impact on America’s path to becoming a superpower once again
