Global economic landscape shifts: Leaving China is really not an option, countries collectively shift in 2025

By the end of 2025, a fierce “reassessment” of the global economy is taking place. The once loudly shouted slogan of “decoupling and breaking chains” is gradually fading into silence, replaced by concrete actions from world leaders and corporate executives—deepening economic cooperation with China. It’s not that anyone has softened, but after truly calculating the costs, everyone realizes the same truth: the global economy has long been closely intertwined with China, and complete severance is simply unrealistic.

Manufacturing Industry’s Unshakable Dominance

Numbers speak the loudest. In 2024, China’s manufacturing value-added accounts for nearly 30% of the global total, surpassing the combined total of the US, Japan, and Germany. This is not just a simple production advantage, but a reflection of deep control over the industrial chain.

Among the top 500 major industrial products worldwide, China ranks first in over 220 categories. From the tiniest screws to large industrial machinery, every link in the global supply chain bears the mark of “Made in China.” Such coverage is nearly impossible for any single country to replicate.

The new energy sector exemplifies China’s monopoly-level advantages:

• 70% of global photovoltaic modules come from China, and 60% of wind power equipment is supplied by China
• 98% of solar panels in the EU depend on imports from China, with Portugal reaching 85%
• Local capacity in Europe can only meet 15%-20% of demand, leaving a huge gap that cannot be self-sufficient

BYD’s factory in Hungary and CATL’s 100GWh battery production base not only bring products but also a complete industrial ecosystem based on Chinese standards. Replacing such a comprehensive system? Almost impossible.

A Paradigm Shift in Transportation Revolution

The performance of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail since its opening speaks volumes. In just two years, it has transported over 12 million passengers, with a peak of 26,700 per day. The journey from Bandung to Jakarta, originally three hours, has been compressed to 46 minutes. This line has become Indonesia’s busiest rail line.

The economic ripple effect is even more astonishing. Centered around Bandung, Karawang Station has become a hub for foreign investment, with hundreds of small and micro enterprises emerging nearby, attracting over 500,000 international tourists annually.

Despite complex environments with frequent rain and earthquakes, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail has maintained safe operation for over 565,000 kilometers, with a punctuality rate above 95%. Such technological stability and operational management are difficult for other countries to replicate. The world has seen China’s strength in rail transit technology and understands why more and more countries are choosing to cooperate with China on infrastructure projects.

Controlling Key Resources to Shape the Overall Situation

China holds the “lifeline” of the new energy transformation:

• 87% of global rare earth processing, 78% of lithium resources, 65% of cobalt resources
• 68.2% of cathode materials, 84.1% of anode materials, 76.4% of total battery production

In 2024, China’s pure electric vehicle exports accounted for 24.7% of the global total, with lithium battery exports reaching 54.9%. This indicates that the widespread adoption of new energy vehicles worldwide largely depends on China’s production efficiency and supply capacity.

German automakers’ sales of electric vehicles in China surged by 63%. The logic behind this number is simple: China is not only the world’s largest new energy vehicle market but also the main supplier of core materials like batteries and components. For any automaker, “de-China-ization” results in self marginalization.

Breakthroughs in Space: Breaking Western Monopoly

China’s space station has not only achieved technological breakthroughs but also changed the international space landscape with an open attitude. Signing agreements with Pakistan to select astronauts, and future plans to include foreign astronauts—this breaks the monopoly of manned spaceflight controlled by a few Western countries.

For nations without their own space stations, the options for manned space projects are now very clear. Even French media acknowledge that China’s progress in space has made the era of Western technological monopoly a thing of the past.

Why “Decoupling” Is an Illusory Mirage

The US manufacturing return plan has been shouted for 8 years, yet China’s manufacturing share has continued to rise against the trend; key minerals and new energy vehicles cannot imagine a supply chain without China.

South Korea’s battery and automotive industries are highly dependent on Chinese supply systems. Moving production capacity not only involves astronomical costs but also unbearable time costs.

Japan’s high-end manufacturing industries need China’s largest market and also source components from China. The result of “de-China-ization” is self-termination of financial resources.

German media’s commentary hits the core: China is not only the “world’s factory” but also the “stabilizer of the global economy.” When countries start to calculate costs with real money, they realize that the cost of excluding China is simply unaffordable.

Conclusion: Establishing a New Pattern

The economic reassessment in 2025 is fundamentally a global acknowledgment of existing facts. China has long been deeply integrated into every aspect of the global economy—from Europe’s energy transition to Southeast Asia’s infrastructure upgrades, from everyday industrial products to cutting-edge space technology. China’s role has become irreplaceable.

The future of global economic competition is no longer about excluding others, but about how to cooperate more efficiently with whom. Those “pessimistic voices” have become a joke in the face of data, while true economic strength has spoken the final answer through actions.