CHINA'S 90% MODEL

CHINA HAS AMERICA BY THE THROAT. HERE’S HOW TO FIGHT BACK AND WIN.

by Ram Charan ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 17, 2026

Corporate consultant Charan urges Americans to reconsider their economic relationships with China.

In October 2025, President Xi Jinping of China announced a slew of materials that exporters would now require a license to ship abroad, including rare-earth elements, components necessary for lithium batteries, and other resources vital to the United States’ most important economic sectors. The prevailing media narrative framed the action as part of a battle of egos between Xi and U.S. President Donald Trump, but Charan argues that it also represented “a lethal weapon more powerful than any military arsenal” and was essentially a declaration of a war of “mutual destruction.” This dire description of China’s economic maneuvering is characteristic of the book, which argues that America’s economic infrastructure, and national defense, is under assault. Charan’s underlying thesis posits that what American consumers, retailers, and CEOs all see as beneficial—China’s ability to manufacture low-priced goods at unfathomable levels of productivity—is actually part of an “insidious” plan to dominate supply chains that sustain American business, research, and military infrastructure. China, he says, has built enough industrial capacity to meet 90% of global demand in targeted sectors. When combined with undervalued currency, the country can offer its exports at unbeatable prices that shut down foreign competitors, Charan notes. Using this model, China has been able to take command of industries ranging from toys and apparel to furniture and solar panels, Charan says. Now, he cautions, the Chinese government is setting its sights on industries crucial to U.S. national security, including pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, and chemicals.

Charan’s book is bipartisan in its critique of American policy toward China, noting previous failures of both major parties in addressing the country’s economic threat. Even Trump’s more hardline stance against China, he asserts, has been marred by a unilateral and chaotic approach that lacks a cohesive strategy. Although the book’s central theme, by the author’s own admission, “sounds alarmist,” the work does provide a detailed plan to combat China’s alleged machinations. Charan, the author of more than three dozen books on corporate leadership, asks CEOs to rethink their Chinese investments and to look “for smart exits,” as well as to communicate clearly to their boards and investors the dangers of the country’s 90% model. Government leaders, he urges, should create a new economic power bloc consisting of the U.S., the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Israel, and the United Kingdom to coordinate policies and investments to counterbalance China’s. But although Charan makes a compelling argument that a systemic plan could create a viable alternative to China within years, he doesn’t account for current geopolitical and domestic divides that make a unified strategy unlikely. Similarly, although the author makes an effective case that China has seized control of myriad industries, he doesn’t provide clear evidence of Machiavellian intent. Nevertheless, this book, which includes a network of research endnotes and a plethora of photographs, charts, diagrams, and other visual aids, offers a well-researched and readable case for the potential economic dangers facing the United States.

An engaging and unsettling narrative of China’s economic playbook.

Pub Date: March 17, 2026

ISBN: 9781646872459

Page Count: 320

Publisher: Ideapress Publishing

Review Posted Online: March 12, 2026

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

CURRENT EVENTS & SOCIAL ISSUES | INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS | ECONOMICS