GeoeconomicGeopoliticalAt a glance (the answer)30 Sep 2026
Is exposure to China three risks or one?
“One in practice: revenue, supply and compliance exposure answer to the same dated decisions; their shared hinge, as announced on 24 September, moved to 10 January 2027.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America
GeoeconomicGeopolitical01. Revenue, supply and compliance exposure answer to the same decisions30 Sep 2026
Do revenue, supply and compliance exposure to China answer to the same decisions?
“They answer to the same small set of decisions in Beijing and Washington, and when one of those decisions is taken all three can move together.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America
GeopoliticalGeoeconomic02. The shared hinge, as announced, moves from 10 November 2026 to 10 January 202730 Sep 2026
When is the shared hinge of exposure to China now dated?
“On 24 September 2026 the US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said on Fox News that the truce would be extended to 10 January 2027, as CNBC reported the same day.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America
Geoeconomic03. The IMF's growth figure and the independent reconstruction differ by about half30 Sep 2026
How fast did China's economy grow in 2025?
“Rhodium Group, rebuilding the year from activity and investment data, estimated real growth of 2.5% to 3.0% in 2025, about half the official pace (Rhodium Group, 22 Dec 2025).”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
GeoeconomicExecutive summary · Findings30 Sep 2026
How large is China's government deficit on the IMF's widest measure?
“The IMF put the 2025 augmented deficit at 14.3% of GDP, against a 4% official headline, as the IMF reports it (IMF, Feb 2026).”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
GeoeconomicGeotechnologyGeopolitical06. Seven domains are assessed, and the Taiwan chip base rates high for the most reader types30 Sep 2026
Which domains carry exposure to China, and for which readers?
“Only the Taiwan chip base is high for five reader types; supply and compliance are high for exporters and operators.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected Taiwan, Province of China
GeoeconomicGeotechnology07. Refining, not mining, is where the mineral exposure sits30 Sep 2026
Where does the mineral exposure to China sit?
“On the IEA's 2026 outlook it held 85% of rare-earth refining in 2025, down from over 90% in 2023, as new projects in the United States and higher output in Malaysia came on stream.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America, Malaysia
Geotechnology08. The export-control channel now runs both ways, and one US step is dated June 202730 Sep 2026
What has become of the controlled-chip channel into China?
“Nvidia's latest filing makes the point again: Hopper shipments to China were under 1% of its data-centre revenue in the quarter to 26 July 2026”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America
GeopoliticalGeotechnology09. A Taiwan crisis would be a supply-chain event before it is a security event30 Sep 2026
How did the source's analysts read the likely form of a Taiwan crisis?
“The source's analysts read any near-term move as likelier to begin as a quarantine or blockade than as an assault (AEI and ISW, The Diplomat, as cited by the source; as researched 19 Jul 2026).”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected Taiwan, Province of China, United States of America
GeotechnologyGeopolitical10. Cyber pre-positioning is a resident exposure, not a closed incident30 Sep 2026
Is Chinese cyber pre-positioning in US infrastructure a closed incident?
“The US Department of Defense's December 2025 report says China's cyber actors continued in 2024 to pre-position attack capabilities against the United States and its allies (as reported by Breaking Defense).”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America
GeopoliticalGeoeconomic11. Russia and Iran make compliance the China exposure most firms underrate30 Sep 2026
How do Russia and Iran reach Western firms with Chinese counterparties?
“A bank, logistics firm or component maker with Chinese counterparties inherits whatever those counterparties do with Russia and Iran.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected Russian Federation, Islamic Republic of Iran
GeopoliticalGeoeconomic12. Beijing's 2026 counter-measure regulations make de-risking itself a legal exposure30 Sep 2026
What do China's 2026 counter-measure regulations reach?
“As Linklaters and others describe it, the first, on the security of industrial and supply chains, provides for investigations of foreign firms that interrupt normal transactions with Chinese counterparties or adopt discriminatory measures against them.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
Geoeconomic13. The two largest foreign-business surveys read the same market differently30 Sep 2026
How do foreign businesses in China read the market in 2026?
“The European Union Chamber of Commerce in China's 2026 survey found 68% of 549 respondents saying business had become more difficult over the past year”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
Geopolitical14. The first hinge is a leaders' calendar, re-dated on 24 September30 Sep 2026
When do the two leaders decide the truce?
“The two leaders met again in Beijing in May 2026 and in Washington in September 2026, when the extension to 10 January 2027 was announced (CNBC, 24 Sep 2026).”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America
Geopolitical15. The second hinge is the military purge, which reached the top uniformed officer in 202630 Sep 2026
How far has the military purge in China reached?
“From the expulsion of a vice chairman in October 2025 to the expulsion of the first-ranked vice chairman in September 2026, four dated steps reached the most senior officers.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
Geopolitical16. The third hinge is the succession void, which removes an early-warning signal30 Sep 2026
Is there an heir whose rise could give early warning?
“For the call this matters as a missing signal, not a forecast: a firm cannot watch an heir's rise as an early warning when there is no heir.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
Geopolitical17. The source's ten tail scenarios are kept, without their odds30 Sep 2026
What could break the picture of exposure to China?
“The ten tails are kept as named ways the picture could break, each with its early sign; the structure of the axes is in the annex.”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected Taiwan, Province of China, Japan, Philippines
GeopoliticalGeoeconomicPart VII · What would prove this wrong30 Sep 2026
What would show the call wrong?
“The call would be wrong if the three faces moved apart at the next dated decision”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China
GeoeconomicAnnex 3 · The present-state tables as researched30 Sep 2026
Where did China's lost share of US imports go?
“Vietnam +2.1 points and Mexico +2.0 points of US import share since 2018”
The brief’s reading of the evidence; not a registered forecast.Primary China Affected United States of America, Viet Nam, Mexico