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Yes, the US dollar is accepted in the international market, but in most cases, the dominance of the US currency has been disadvantageous to many developing countries. If countries unite to push for an alternative to this supremacy, it could help in changing the global economic order.

US President-elect Donald Trump has threatened the BRICS countries, warning that any attempt to move away from the dollar in international trade will result in 100 percent tariffs. However, such a move would not only hurt BRICS members but also the United States, which depends on China for certain products.

In an era where multilateralism is gaining traction, there is no room for protectionism. Therefore, Trump should avoid bullying other countries, as disrupting the global supply chain could harm the global economy. Consensus-building and mutually beneficial cooperation are needed to tackle the unprecedented challenges facing the world today, which threaten humanity’s existence.

Bullying sovereign nations in this multipolar era should not be tolerated, as no country’s interests should supersede those of others.

Although the US has been trying to decouple from Beijing, it’s unlikely to succeed, as the COVID-19 crisis highlighted America’s dependence on China for critical medical supplies like N95 masks. For more than 15 years, Beijing has followed a strategy of reducing its reliance on foreign technology and resources.

This strategy is set to continue for another 15 years, allowing China to withstand punitive tariffs, such as those suggested by Trump, without suffering significant setbacks. Meanwhile, developing countries, particularly in Africa, would face the brunt of these economic pressures.

During his first term, Trump was alarmed by China’s rapid rise and pushed Beijing to abandon its “Made in China 2025” plan. However, China’s resilience indicates that BRICS could challenge dollar hegemony. While BRICS currencies are not widely accepted, their internal use could liberalize the global market and end the unilateralism promoted by Trump.

The “Made in China 2025” plan, launched in 2015, aimed to reduce China’s dependence on foreign technology, a goal that many Chinese scholars believe has already been largely achieved. Over the past two decades, China has attracted upstream players and, by 2010, overtook the US to become the world’s largest value-added manufacturer, accounting for 28 percent of global production by 2018. China’s rise was fueled not just by its size and low labor costs, but also by significant investments in education and skilled talent.

In September this year, iPhone CEO Tim Cook said the extensive pool of skilled workers, is essential for the intricate manufacturing processes that Apple products demand adding that China stopped being a low-labor-cost country many years ago.
Trump’s suggestion that BRICS countries should abandon the US market overlooks the possibility that these countries may find other markets among themselves or elsewhere, rendering Trump’s 100 percent tariff threat irrelevant.

Currently, BRICS countries collectively boast a GDP of over $60 trillion, surpassing that of the G7 countries, with investable wealth of $45 trillion.

These emerging economies, which represent 45 percent of the global population and control 45 percent of global oil production, cannot be easily disregarded. They are a significant force, and it would benefit the global economy for Trump to engage with them constructively to build a consensus that yields win-win outcomes instead of resorting to tariffs.

— The writer is a Journalist and Communication Consultant