6 - Hidden Economic Costs of Geopolitical Disputes for Supply Chains in East Asia

Summary

As a result of increasing vertical specialization in East Asia, interstate relations have a greater potential to influence global supply chains in the region. Despite these growing linkages, the IPE literature has yet to develop a theory for understanding the pathways through which geopolitical disputes generate shifts in supply chains. This chapter proposes a theoretical framework for the effects of nonviolent geopolitical disputes on the topology of supply chains in East Asia. Using case studies of ongoing geopolitical disputes in East Asia, it illustrates how legal actions, security actions, and trade barriers lead to contractionary or diversionary shifts in the topology of supply chains. The case studies also show that only security actions with high degrees of uncertainty are sufficient to trigger shifts in the topology of supply chains. These conclusions are critical for states to understand the implications of even non-economic actions for international trade relations and the makeup of global supply chains. This chapter theoretically advances the literature on supply chains by considering the impact of interstate relations on their makeup and distribution.