The Guardian put out an interesting take on reshoring, instead framing it as “friendshoring.”
What is friendshoring? Basically, it means that the US and its strategic partners should create trade routes with partners who broadly share our values, instead of assuming 100% of manufacturing can, or should, take place in the US.
In a report on America’s supply chains earlier this year, the Biden administration warned: “The United States cannot make, mine, or manufacture everything ourselves. We must cooperate with our allies and partners to foster and promote collective supply chain resilience.”
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen echoed this idea in a speech to the Atlantic Council. “Favoring the friendshoring of supply chains to … trusted countries, so we can continue to securely extend market access, will lower the risks to our economy as well as to our trusted trade partners.”
This is not without risks. Friendshoring is part of a “deglobalization” process, which could see further supply shocks and higher prices in the short term and lower growth in the long run.