China’s preferential tariffs offer Kenya a path to rebalance trade

China imports

Kenyan exporters should see China not just as a distant market but as a partner in improving standards and competitiveness.

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Kenya stands on the cusp of a remarkable opportunity in its economic partnership with China. For years, Beijing has been one of Nairobi’s most significant trading partners, a key financier of infrastructure projects, and an enabler of industrial transformation.

While the trade balance has long tilted in China’s favour, largely due to Kenya’s heavy importation of machinery, construction materials, and manufactured goods, the story is not one of inequality but of potential.

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