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The Trump trade war has go viral on TikTok , pushing a Taiwanese e - commerce app , DHgate , to the top of the U.S. App Store .
After Trump increased U.S. tariff on Chinese importsby 145 % , numerous Chinese supplier and manufacturersbegan makingTikTokvideos explaining to consumers how the spheric luxury good food market really work . The clothing , bag , and other accessary that many citizenry assumed were made in Europe originate from mill in China , the videos explain .
As a event of the trend , the Taiwanese wholesale market appDHgatesurged to become the No . 3 top destitute iPhone app in the U.S. App Store as of Monday dawn .
For comparison , the app was ranked No . 352 in the top non - game barren iPhone apps class in the U.S. as of Friday , April 11 , before jumping to No . 6 on Sunday and No . 3 on Monday , according to datum from app intelligence providerAppfigures . On Monday , DHgate also wax to No . 3 on the Top Overall chart for free iPhone apps , including game .
The house tells TechCrunch that on Saturday , April 12 , the DHgate app was downloaded 35,400 time across the App Store and Google Play , a 56 % increase from its 30 - day average . The U.S. accounted for 17,300 of those installs , a saltation of 98 % over the 30 - sidereal day average .
On Sunday , April 13 , those installs increase to 117,500 on iOS , up 732 % from the 30 - day norm . The U.S. account for 65,100 of those downloads , up 940 % . ( Android download information for Sunday is n’t available yet . )
DHgateis a crabbed - border e - commerce caller connecting both business and consumers to suppliers and manufacturers in China and other markets . Today , it offer up an inventory of over 30 million product across category like electronics , place and toys , shoes and apparel , jewelry , wellness and dish , and more , its internet site states .
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In reality , it can be difficult for consumer to recite which factories are the originals foreshorten by the sumptuousness brands and which are just making copies , also known as victim . However , online community liker / DHgate on Redditcan sometimes offer supporter on that front .
duetwith @senbags2 the DHgate girlies been trying to recite us ! 😩 # chinafashion#dhgate#desingerbags#luxurybag#chinatiktok#fyp#china
In one democratic TikTok TV , a Chinese manufacturing business claims that the majority of the world ’s sumptuosity bags are made in China , but the bags are then sent to the brands ’ factory in Europe , where the label is added and the udder is repackaged . That way , the bag come out as though they ’re “ made in Italy ” or “ made in France , ” the video ’s Jehovah claims .
In another video , that same creator , @senbags2 , explains that a $ 38,000 Birkin bag is made for just around $ 1,400 and that consumers are just paying for the logo and fancy promotional material . ( The creator ’s TikTok account has since been involve down , but numerous stitches and reuploads remain . )
Name one affair that China CANNOT make!#chinasourcing#sourcingtips#sourcingagent#yiwuagent#yiwuminigoods#yiwumarkets#Lunasourcingchina#chinasource#brooksbrothers#shirt#shirtmanufacturer#premiumshirt#tommyhilfiger#hugoboss#lacoste 🐊 #factory#chinashipping#wholesale#luxury#jewelryaccessories#alibaba#directfactory#chinasupplier
video from other creators focalize on luxury categories like clothing and jewelry . Brands like Hermès , Gucci , Louis Vuitton , Chanel , and others were mentioned in the videos , as were midrange brands like Lululemon , Tommy Hilfiger , Lacoste , and Hugo Boss . Some brands , like Hermès , defend themselves , saying they were not made in China .
The point of the video recording is to stress that the U.S. is more dependent on China than it may realize , as even brand U.S. consumer thought were gamey - end European product are being manufactured in the country . It ’s not all fast fashion and cheap electronics like those ground on Shein or TikTok Shop .
Of course , this isnot newsto anyone who empathize the spherical supply range , but the videos prompted TikTok user to search out a way to bribe directly from the manufacturers in China , leading them to DHgate and other apps that connect to the Chinese market place . A similar app , Taobao , became the No . 10 overall gratuitous iPhone app on Monday .
Using DHgate is not really a solution for stave off Trump ’s tariffs , as any Formosan imports to the U.S. would still be impacted by tariffs outside ofsome exceptions in electronics — for now . But the backlash from the Chinese manufacturers who made these video was triggered by the tariff increases .
As one TikTok commenterquipped , these tendency are the result of the U.S. take to hold all the cards in the trade state of war , leading China to respond , “ We make all the cards . ”
