# ASEAN Transshipment and US Tariffs: Navigating Opportunities and Mitigating Risks

- Link: https://www.thailand-business-news.com/asean/252593-asean-transshipment-and-us-tariffs-navigating-opportunities-and-mitigating-risks
- Published: 2025-10-27T07:58:00+07:00
- Author: ASEAN Briefing

**In 2025, the U.S. expanded tariffs across strategic sectors, targeting entire 
supply chains globally, with stricter origin verification, involving ASEAN, Vietnam,
Malaysia, Thailand, and Mexico, moving toward systemic protectionism.**

### Expansion of U.S. Tariff Policy in 2025

In 2025, the United States shifted from a China-specific tariff approach to a broader
protectionist strategy targeting entire value chains in key sectors like electric
vehicles, lithium-ion batteries, solar components, steel, aluminum, and semiconductors.
Tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles soared to 100%, solar cell duties rose to 50%,
and lithium-ion batteries were taxed at 25% in 2024. Additionally, semiconductor
imports faced tariffs of up to 50% under the revamped Section 301 measures, signaling
a comprehensive move to shield critical industries from imported competition.

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### ASEAN’s Evolving Role in Global Supply Chains

As companies adapt to new trade policies, ASEAN has emerged as a vital production
hub to retain market access in the West. In 2024, US imports from ASEAN reached 
US$352.1 billion, showcasing the region’s growing importance in diversified supply
chains. However, strict rules now govern transshipment, requiring genuine value 
addition and verifiable origin, effectively ending the era of simple rerouting to
evade tariffs.

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### Moving Toward Systemic Protectionism

The 2025 framework signifies a shift from targeted enforcement to systemic protectionism.
Combined, the updated Section 301 and 232 measures now cover over US$350 billion
worth of imports, including countries like Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, and Mexico,
which were previously shielded from China-centric tariffs. This approach includes
rigorous cross-checking of origin declarations using extensive supply-chain databases,
making compliance integral and retroactive duties more commonplace for minimal assembly
or relabeling activities.

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  |  This article was first published by _[ASEAN Briefing](https://www.aseanbriefing.com) _, which is produced by [Dezan Shira & Associates](https://www.dezshira.com/). The firm assists foreign investors throughout Asia from offices [across the world](https://www.dezshira.com/office), including in in [China](https://www.dezshira.com/office/china), [Hong Kong](https://www.dezshira.com/office/hong-kong.html), [Vietnam](https://www.dezshira.com/office/vietnam), [Singapore](https://www.dezshira.com/office/singapore.html), and [India](https://www.dezshira.com/office/india) . Readers may write to [info@dezshira.com](https://www.thailand-business-news.com/asean/info@dezshira.com) for more support. |

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**Read the original article :** [ASEAN Transshipment and US Tariffs – Balancing Opportunity and Risk ](https://www.aseanbriefing.com/news/asean-transshipment-and-us-tariffs-balancing-opportunity-and-risk/?rand=93901)