Erick Shen

4/10/2015
Recently, many countries have been fighting for influence over sub-Saharan
Africa for its abundance of natural resources; however, the U.S. and China are the
main competitors for influence. Africa produces an abundance of bauxite, platinum,
and nickel. Bauxite is used for aluminum; Platinum is used in dentistry tools, lab
equipment, and catalytic convertors; Nickel is used for batteries, magnets and
stainless steel. This article discusses how Chinas current economic ties to Africa are
much deeper than Americas economic ties. In the year 2013, China and Africa
traded around $200 billion worth of good where China obtained Africas resources
and Africa obtained Chinese electronics and textiles. Obama responded to this by
announcing that U.S. companies were going to invest $14 billion in Africa which is
miniscule compared to Chinas investment of $75 billion in 11 years. The U.S.,
however, seems to be building a more long lasting relationship with African than the
Chinese. It appears as if China is seeking short term economic gains for its country
by investing in troubling countries like Zimbabwe. With economic investments in
Africa, America is also striving to promote democracy in Africa. An example of
American political influence in African politics includes the situation in the
Democratic Republic of Congo where a two term president want to continue a third
term but is constitutionally not allowed. U.S. Secretary of State John Carry traveled
to the Congo to remind their current president that he is able to put the country on
a continued path to democracy.
This article demonstrates how there can be politics in trade. The U.S. trying to
promote democracy around the world by using connections established through
trade. The investments that the U.S. has made into Africa are considered to be

capital accounts because the U.S. wants to maintain and further develop its
relationship with Africa. China, on the other hand, considers their investment as a
current account because they purchase items once and the investment does not
establish a long term relationship. This article also shows the benefits of
specialization. China and Africa are both able to prosper from trading with each
other because each person specialized in a certain category. China has specialized
in electronics and textiles while Africa has specialized in the extraction of natural
resources. With these specializations, China and Africa can both benefit from trade
substantially.