Trump Tariffs Put US Services Trade Surplus With China at Risk

Travel is a major US export to China, thanks to the millions of Chinese tourists visiting each year.

Photographer: Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images
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China is signaling it may target US services exports as payback for President Donald Trump’s record tariffs, putting a lesser-known but sizable part of their trade relationship at risk.

While most of the focus in Washington is on the US goods deficit with China, services have long been a bright spot for American companies. Last year alone, the US sold a net $32 billion in services to China — including education, travel, and entertainment — and nearly $300 billion globally.