The United States history of trade with China is a long and complex one, and for a time the US did not even trade or have relations with China at all. Relations with China have existed since the United States’ very birth. In fact, to this day, a person visiting certain rooms of the State Department can see vases of Chinese porcelain purchased by none other than George Washington himself. Viewers will be surprised to see that on the vases there are depictions of men and women wearing traditional colonial American clothing, but with Chinese faces and hair styles. The designer of the Chinese porcelain vases was given descriptions of how he should paint the clothing, but had never seen a white person. Since the 1780s, China imports have been brought to the US, initially through sending ships filled with tea, silks, and spices to US shores.
This long relationship was interrupted when China became two countries- the communist People’s Republic of China and the democratic Taiwan. From 1950-1970 there were no relations between the US and China, but trade began again after President Richard Nixon’s famous and historical visit to China in 1972. Relations normalized between the countries, despite lingering tensions over the status of Taiwan, and many attribute this change in US policy to the power of globalization, which is the idea that countries can no longer exist on isolationist policies but are affected by and dependent upon the trade and economies of the other members of the international economy.
Since Nixon’s visit, the number of imports the US receives from China has continued to grow, and today China’s business is an integral part of the US economy. In fact, many political scientists and economists express concern over the US’ seemingly growing dependence on economic infusions from China.