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US-China head-to-head: Explained in 11 maps and charts

Al Jazeera · · 1663 words · By Hanna Duggal; Marium Ali
Economic Trade War US-China Geopolitical Competition Technological Supremacy
open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-head-explained-in-11-m…

psychologyDetected Techniques

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Loaded Language 80% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
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Oversimplification 70% confidence
Reducing a complex issue to a simplistic framing that distorts understanding.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

33 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

schedule Pending 23
info Single Source 8
help Insufficient Evidence 2
info
“US President Donald Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 14 and 15”
SINGLE SOURCE
The claim is explicitly stated in the Al Jazeera article provided in the evidence, but no other independent source corroborates this specific meeting date or the context of the 'US-Israel war on Iran'.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The three largest airlines in the world, by total number of passengers carried, are U.S.-based; American Airlines became the global leader after its 2013 merger with US Airways. [405]
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S. or US) or colloquially as America, is a country that is mainly in North America. It is made of 50 states, 1 federal district (…
https://simple.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Get facts about the U.S., its laws, history, and statistics. Buy government property. Learn about the president and how to contact elected officials and federal agencies.
https://www.usa.gov/about-the-us
info
“the US selling goods worth $729bn in 2001, while China ranked fourth at $266bn”
SINGLE SOURCE
While the Al Jazeera source discusses current trade, the specific 2001 figures for US ($729bn) and China ($266bn) are not present in the provided evidence snippets.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Countries of which United States is the largest trading partner.The United States is also the primary export or import partner of several countries. The percentages on these tables are based on 2022 d…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_the_largest_trading_pa…
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web search NEUTRAL — Today, China is the world’s largest exporter, selling $3.59 trillion in goods globally compared with the US’s $1.9 trillion per year. Currently, 145 economies trade more with China than with the US.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-he…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — This section shows exports and imports data at subnational level for China. Click any date in the line plot, any subnational region in the treemap, or any product, destination or origin country to exp…
https://oec.world/en/profile/country/chn
info
“At that time, only 30 economies traded more with China than with the US.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence mentions trade integration and economies trading more with China, but does not provide the specific number '30 economies' for the year 2001.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — US President Donald Trump will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 14 and 15, following weeks of delays due to the US-Israel war on Iran. The talks are expected to focus on trade relat…
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-he…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Economies trading more intensely with either country are shown in darker red (for China) or blue (for the United States). We focus on two-way trade flows (i.e. exports plus imports) as the principal m…
https://interactives.lowyinstitute.org/features/china-versus…
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web search NEUTRAL — the US ran a trade deficit with China of $258 billion.
https://www.census.gov/foreign-trade/balance/c5700.html
info
“Today, China is the world’s largest exporter, selling $3.59 trillion in goods globally compared with the US’s $1.9 trillion per year.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific figures ($3.59 trillion for China and $1.9 trillion for US) are reported by Al Jazeera. Other sources discuss China's status as a large exporter but do not confirm these exact numbers.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — China, [h] officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), [i] is a country in East Asia. It is the second-most populous country after India, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, representing 17%…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/China
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 22 hours ago · China, the largest of all Asian countries, occupies nearly the entire East Asian landmass and covers approximately one-fourteenth of the land area of Earth, making it almost as large as…
https://www.britannica.com/place/China
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web search NEUTRAL — View the latest China news and videos, including politics, travel and business headlines.
https://www.cnn.com/world/china
info
“Currently, 145 economies trade more with China than with the US.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific number of 145 economies is mentioned only in the Al Jazeera source. The Lowy Institute source confirms the trend but not the specific count.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — China accounted for 19% of the global economy in 2025 in PPP terms, and around 17% in nominal terms in 2025. The economy consists of state-owned enterprises and mixed-ownership enterprises, as...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_China
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Today, China is the world’s largest exporter, selling $3.59 trillion in goods globally compared with the US’s $1.9 trillion per year. Currently, 145 economies trade more with China than with the US.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-he…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Trade twice as much or more with China than US. Authors’ calculations based on IMF Direction of Trade Statistics. It is no secret what’s behind China’s increasingly deep trade relationships: a big jum…
https://interactives.lowyinstitute.org/features/china-versus…
info
“In 2024, China sold $3.59 trillion in goods and bought $2.58 trillion, producing a trade surplus of more than $1 trillion”
SINGLE SOURCE
The Al Jazeera source explicitly states these 2024 figures ($3.59T exports, $2.58T imports, >$1T surplus). While another source mentions a $1.2T surplus in 2025, it does not corroborate the 2024 breakdown.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In 2024, China sold $3.59 trillion in goods and bought $2.58 trillion, producing a trade surplus of more than $1 trillion – the largest of any country. China’s main exports include
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-he…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — This section shows exports and imports data at subnational level for China. Click any date in the line plot, any subnational region in the treemap, or any product, destination or origin country to exp…
https://oec.world/en/profile/country/chn
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — China’s exports ended last year with a growth spurt and sent its trade surplus to a record $1.2 trillion in 2025, extending a boom that’s seen factories escape Donald Trump’s tariffs by making deeper …
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-14/china-end…
info
“China’s main exports include: Machinery and electrical machines ($1.68 trillion), Metals ($286bn), Textiles ($268bn).”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific breakdown of Machinery ($1.68T), Metals ($286bn), and Textiles ($268bn) is found only in the Al Jazeera source. Other sources list different categories or values.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — This list of countries and territories by their exports, including both merchandise exports and service exports, is based on data from the World Bank. Merchandise exports are goods that are produced i…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_exports
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web search NEUTRAL — China’s main exports include: Advertisement. Machinery and electrical machines ($1.68 trillion), such as phones and computers, accounting for nearly one-third of total exports. Metals ($286bn). Textil…
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-he…
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web search NEUTRAL — Electrical machinery, equipment: US$1 trillion (26.9% of total exports). Machinery including computers: $603.8 billion (16%). Vehicles: $248.3 billion (6.6%).
https://www.worldstopexports.com/chinas-top-10-exports/
info
“In 2024, [the US] sold $1.9 trillion worth of goods globally and bought $3.12 trillion”
SINGLE SOURCE
The specific 2024 figures for US exports ($1.9 trillion) and imports ($3.12 trillion) are reported only by Al Jazeera.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The economic history of the United States began with British settlements along the Eastern seaboard in the 17th and 18th centuries. After 1700, the United States gained population rapidly, and imports…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_the_United_States
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web search NEUTRAL — The US is the second-largest exporter in the world. In 2024, it sold $1.9 trillion worth of goods globally and bought $3.12 trillion, creating a large trade deficit.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/13/us-china-head-to-he…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Find the latest trade statistics and economic complexity data for United States.
https://oec.world/en/profile/country/usa
help
“The US’s main exports include: Machinery and electrical machines ($447bn), Mineral products including fuels, oils, waxes and their derivatives ($364bn), Chemical products ($245bn).”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim in the search results.
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“The US and China are significant trading partners, exchanging more than $500bn worth of goods in 2025”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was provided for this claim in the search results.
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“the average effective US tariff on imports from China is about 31.6 percent, according to the Penn Wharton Budget Model.”
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“China has imposed a series of tariffs on key US energy and agricultural exports, including a blanket 10 percent levy on all US imports, with surcharges on specific items. These range from 11 percent on propane and ethane to 77 percent on beef”
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“the US remains China’s largest trading partner, while China ranks third for the US, behind Mexico and Canada.”
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“In 2024, the US bought $453bn worth of goods from China.”
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“That same year, China bought $145bn worth of goods from the US”
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“US general government debt standing at 115 percent of GDP, while China’s stands at 94 percent of GDP.”
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“China’s debt... from about 22 percent of GDP in 2000 to about 34 percent in 2009”
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“The US national debt now exceeds $39 trillion”
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“the US spent $954bn or 3.1 percent of its GDP on its military in 2025, while China spent $336bn or 1.7 percent”
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“Together, the US and China make up more than half of the world’s total military spending.”
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“In 2024, [China] consumed 48,477 TWh, with 80 percent generated by fossil fuels, mostly coal.”
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“In 2024, [the US] consumed 26,349 TWh, also with approximately 80 percent coming from fossil fuels, mostly oil.”
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“in 2024 China spent $290bn on green energy, while the US spent $97bn.”
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“the US leads the world in AI investment with $109bn in corporate spending in 2024 alone”
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“It [the US] also has twice as many notable AI model releases as China”
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“Taiwan... produces almost 90 percent of the advanced chips needed for AI development.”
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“Almost half of all new cars sold in China in 2024 were electric, compared to about 10 percent in the US”
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“nearly $230bn in government subsidies [for EVs in China] between 2009 and 2024.”
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“China holds the world’s largest rare earth mineral reserves, with an estimated 44 million tonnes of known rare earth oxide deposits in 2024”
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“The US has the seventh-highest known rare earth reserves in the world at 1.9 million tonnes”
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“The US and China are part of a number of organisations jointly, such as the UN Security Council, the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the G20 and APEC.”
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“China is part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and BRICS. It is also part of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).”
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“The US is part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), the OECD, the G7, the Five Eyes Alliance and the trilateral security partnership AUKUS”
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info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.