The Great Pivot: Top Fortune 500 Companies Reducing Supply Chain Exposure to China in 2025
Discover which Fortune 500 giants—including Apple, HP, and Walmart—are leading the shift away from China, adopting 'China Plus One' and nearshoring strategies to mitigate geopolitical risk and tariffs in 2025.
5/8/20244 min read
Fortune 500 Strategy: De-risking and Diversifying the Global Supply Chain
The global trade landscape is undergoing its most profound transformation in decades. In 2025, many top Fortune 500 companies are actively and aggressively reducing their supply chain exposure to China. This strategic pivot is a direct response to a perfect storm of factors: elevated tariffs, escalating geopolitical tensions, and the vital corporate need for robust operational resilience. The era of hyper-optimized, "just-in-time" supply chains—often centered entirely on Chinese manufacturing—is giving way to a more pragmatic, "just-in-case" model that prioritizes diversification and multi-regional sourcing. This movement is fundamentally reshaping how American goods are made and delivered, with a marked emphasis on strategies like "China Plus One" and nearshoring.
Supply Chain Restructuring: A Strategic Imperative
For American businesses, the reliance on a single, dominant country for sourcing and manufacturing has introduced enormous risk, particularly as trade policy remains volatile and unpredictable. The imposition of steep tariffs—reaching as high as 145% in certain sectors—on Chinese goods by the U.S. has created a cost-prohibitive environment for many firms reliant on Chinese components and finished products [1].
Companies have realized that dependence on a single point of failure is no longer strategically viable [2]. As a result, Fortune 500 firms are now prioritizing flexibility and incorporating alternative sourcing options into their core business models [3, 5]. This is more than just a momentary adjustment; it is a fundamental reassessment of global supply chain strategy, signaling a permanent move toward a more resilient, multi-country model.
China Plus One: The Diversification Solution
The predominant strategy adopted by leading corporations to achieve this resilience is known as "China Plus One." This approach involves maintaining a necessary—albeit smaller—presence in China while simultaneously and significantly expanding manufacturing and sourcing operations to other countries. The primary beneficiaries of this strategy include emerging hubs such as India, Vietnam, Mexico, and Thailand.
Several Fortune 500 giants are leading this transformation:
Apple is a flagship example, accelerating its strategic shift of iPhone production to India. This acceleration has resulted in a reported 76% increase in exports to the U.S. compared to previous years. Apple has set an ambitious internal goal of moving between 15% and 20% of its overall production out of China by 2026 [2, 3].
HP Inc. is transitioning toward a goal of manufacturing 90% of its North American-destined products outside China by the end of 2025. By expanding supplier partnerships in Taiwan and Thailand, HP is effectively cutting costs and minimizing tariff-related disruptions [2, 3].
Dell Technologies has relocated portions of its manufacturing base to Mexico and Vietnam, a move that balances cost control with import resilience in the North American market.
Foxconn, a critical manufacturing partner for many major tech companies, has backed this trend by investing $1.5 billion in new facilities in India, furthering its geographical supply chain reach and capacity outside of China.
Intel continues to expand its own manufacturing footprint in the U.S. (notably with new facilities in Ohio) and in Germany, a strategy known as reshoring that decreases its dependency on Chinese fabrication and assembly facilities [2].
Diversification Beyond Tech: Retail and Automotive Adjustments
The shift is not limited to the technology sector. Retail giants and automakers, which manage extensive global supplier networks, are making similar adjustments to combat the impacts of high tariffs and logistical bottlenecks.
Walmart, which has historically relied on Chinese consumer goods for the vast majority of the U.S. market, reduced its Chinese imports by about 10% in 2024. Instead, the retail giant is sourcing more from Southeast Asia and India. This diversification mitigates tariff risk but demands increased complexity in logistics and supply management [3].
Ford Motor Co. has responded to tariffs on essential materials like steel and aluminum by embracing nearshoring—shifting some of its sourcing and component manufacturing closer to its final assembly plants in North America, particularly to Mexico. This shift leverages lower labor costs but introduces new logistical challenges, such as increased cross-border trucking delays.
Navigating the Roadblocks
The transition away from decades of centralization in China is a monumental effort and is not without significant challenges. Reshoring and nearshoring require substantial capital investment and workforce retraining, and they often result in increased manufacturing costs—for instance, the cost of pharmaceutical raw ingredients has been reported to be as much as 35% higher when sourced outside of China [3]. Furthermore, alternative countries often present hurdles such as infrastructure gaps, a smaller skilled labor pool, and the necessity for more robust supplier quality management.
Despite these hurdles, the urgency driven by geopolitical risk and tariff uncertainty is fueling the diversification momentum. Government incentives, such as those in the U.S., are encouraging domestic production [2]. A Deloitte study predicts that as much as 40% of U.S. companies could relocate a portion of their supply chains to North America by 2026 [3].
The Way Forward: Resilience and Adaptability
Fortune 500 companies are engineering the next chapter of global trade. By strategically moving manufacturing, sourcing, and investment outside of China, they are actively hedging against future geopolitical risks and building long-term resilience into their operations. While China remains an unavoidable and key market, the rapid adoption of a multi-regional approach—defined by agility, adaptability, and deliberate diversification—signifies a new, more balanced era for supply chain management.
Top Fortune 500 Companies Reducing China Supply Chain Exposure
The following Fortune 500 companies were identified as leading the charge in supply chain diversification:
Apple
HP Inc.
Dell Technologies
Walmart
Ford Motor Co.
Foxconn (Major manufacturing partner for Fortune 500 tech companies)
Sources Cited (ALA Format)
"How does a Fortune 500 company rebuild its supply chain overnight," Fortune. April 11, 2025. https://fortune.com/2025/04/11/supply-chain-logistics-tariffs-trade-strategy-china/.
"Major Corporations Implement ‘China Plus One’ Strategy to Diversify Supply Chain in 2025," CNC Machines. https://cncmachines.com/multinational-corporations-relocate-manufacturing-from-china-2025.
"How Tariffs Are Reshaping Global Supply Chains in 2025," SupplyChainBrain. https://www.supplychainbrain.com/blogs/1-think-tank/post/41852-how-tariffs-are-reshaping-global-supply-chains-in-2025.
"Nearshoring 2025 US Supply Chains Shift Away from China Trends," CPSCP.org. https://cpscp.org/nearshoring-2025-us-supply-chains-shift-away-from-china-trends/.
"How does a Fortune 500 company rebuild its supply chain overnight," Finance Yahoo. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/does-fortune-500-company-rebuild-100000122.html.