Some Chinese brands might not be spared by the ire of newly elected Donald Trump, who is a vocal critic of China particularly when it comes to its trade relations with the U.S.
Electronics exporters Lenovo and ZTE could be put under pressure should any tension erupt between China and the U.S., Credit Suisse said in a report by Bloomberg.
Throughout his campaign, Trump openly criticized China and even threatened to impose 45 percent tariffs on Chinese imported goods. In 2011, the business mogul called China as an "absolute abuser of the United States" in a presidential test-run speech back in 2011.
"Most people I talk to tend not to think a trade war is the base-case scenario--they treat it as a black swan event," Hao Hong, an analyst at Bocom International Holdings Co., told Bloomberg in an interview. "I think the possibility is much larger."
The MSCI China Index could slip by 30 percent once the U.S. and China impose 45 percent tariffs on each other, Jonathan Garner, a Morgan Stanley strategist, also told Bloomberg.
Makers of electronics, apparel and home appliances could likely be victims of any possible trade war between the world's two biggest economies, said Reto Hess, head of global equity research at Credit Suisse. This is due to their "big revenue exposure to American customers."
But should China strike back by boycotting American brands, the possible casualties include Nike, Ford, General Motors and Tifanny & Co.
In a separate report, Bloomberg wrote that China is "ready to retaliate" if Trump imposes punitive measures against Chinese imports.
"Options include subjecting well-known U.S. companies or ones with large Chinese operations to tax or antitrust probes," Bloomberg said, citing sources familiar with the matter. "Other possible measures include anti-dumping investigations and scaling back government purchases of American products."