Is it safe to purchase from China now?

Perhaps I am just being overly worried but is just the growing tension between the USA and China going to increase the risk that an order placed to a China vendor will be prevented from being shipped or if so, take a lot longer to arrive? I am planning to proceed to purchase a large amount of the LiFePO4 cells but I'm worried that it will be a big risk. Can anyone alleviate my concern? Thanks in advance.

It’s generally safe in the sense that if you order something which never arrives, you will have purchase protection from most platforms which will refund what you paid (with back up from your credit card company if that fails). It’s generally not safe in the sense that often what you receive doesn’t match the description, whether that’s used cells being sold as new, or B grade (or worse) being passed off as A grade.

But if you take into account the lower prices compared with western vendors (who anyway buy from China and re-sell), then it’s normally worth it and most of us do it.

There’s plenty of advice on buying more safely from Chinese vendors on this forum. Time spent researching will pay dividends.

Economic advantage will nearly always take priority over political or ethical motivations in the world that we live in. For that reason, trade with China will remain available.

I think you may be worried about sanctions against China causing trade to be interrupted they way it has been with Russia or Venezuela. For the U.S., blocking currency exchange and trade with those countries was relatively painless. However, if you look at the store at how many products are made in China, you will see that taking the same steps against China will not be painless. There may be a lot of noise on the news, but there is a symbiosis in the trade relationship that neither country can economically afford to lose right now. At worst, there may be additional taxation of imports which increases cost.

@Sverige hit upon the real issue to be concerned about. Be aware that 'buyer protection' from sales platforms in China really don't protect you because they almost always side with the vendor in disputes. You should always pay with a payment method that gives you protection by the U.S. based end of the payment company refunding your money. Credit cards and Paypal are fairly safe.

Before buying big ticket items from China do your research. Than do it again just in case you looked at the wrong thing to begin with. First off is nothing that is posted by a marketer from China can be relied upon to be accurate. It might be but then again it could just be faked certifications and copied photos from more legitimate concerns.

If you see several companies selling the same item for around the same price but one store front has a much lower price beware. These folks are often buying from the same wholesale source and reselling it. No way does one of them get a better deal than the rest.

Could trade with China be halted if they attacked Taiwan? Yes indeed. However China prefers the long game over more direct action. They can wait and keep pushing up to and just short of military hostilities. Especially so since they have the World buffaloed into accepting the so called 1 China policy.

Mattb4 said:

If you see several companies selling the same item for around the same price but one store front has a much lower price beware. These folks are often buying from the same wholesale source and reselling it. No way does one of them get a better deal than the rest.

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The other thing to watch out for, especially on electrical components, is resellers who buy cast-off equipment (essentially equipment that failed to pass inspection) from manufacturers and then repackage it and sell it as good. They will have extremely low prices, but the stuff they sell can be hazardous.

However, I also can say that there are reputable dealers in China also. I have made one completely blind purchase and it turned out to be a good experience. I was looking for a portable inverter with a specific physical layout. I found one company on Alibaba that was selling what I wanted, but I searched the internet and this forum for anyone else who had a purchase experience with them and found nothing. Then I searched Amazon for a rebranded version of their inverter, figuring it would be more expensive but safer to purchase from there. I did not find a comparable one on Amazon. So I started chatting with the sales rep, asked some questions, got a shipping quote, and decided I was happy enough with their ability to answer questions that I made the purchase. After I received the product, they followed up asking if it met my needs. So, don't think everyone selling from China is out to scam you, but be very cautious at the same time.

Mattb4 said:

Before buying big ticket items from China do your research. Than do it again just in case you looked at the wrong thing to begin with. First off is nothing that is posted by a marketer from China can be relied upon to be accurate. It might be but then again it could just be faked certifications and copied photos from more legitimate concerns.

If you see several companies selling the same item for around the same price but one store front has a much lower price beware. These folks are often buying from the same wholesale source and reselling it. No way does one of them get a better deal than the rest.

Could trade with China be halted if they attacked Taiwan? Yes indeed. However China prefers the long game over more direct action. They can wait and keep pushing up to and just short of military hostilities. Especially so since they have the World buffaloed into accepting the so called 1 China policy.

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I'm living in Taiwan...
What I can see, only problem for Taiwan is US... China have no reason to be aggressive... They want to help... But politics, yeah... That is the problem in Taiwan...
Wish I chose China instead of Taiwan...
Hahaha...
I'm selling the batteries in Europe, all from China... Most of the time you have to find good person to work with...
Good luck...

Hatorri said:

Perhaps I am just being overly worried but is just the growing tension between the USA and China going to increase the risk that an order placed to a China vendor will be prevented from being shipped or if so, take a lot longer to arrive? I am planning to proceed to purchase a large amount of the LiFePO4 cells but I'm worried that it will be a big risk. Can anyone alleviate my concern? Thanks in advance.

Click to expand...

Just find on Alibaba what you need... Pay with PayPal, and you are good...
I have small business with solar power systems in Europe... And everything buying from China...
Let me know if I can help you with order... Good luck...

No problems with my orders in the last 30 days.

From month delivery to Europe is near two weeks,
or 3-5 days from local stores.


sarcasm:
What do tens of zeroes US debt to China ?

saen said:

From month delivery to Europe is near two weeks,
or 3-5 days from local stores.

Click to expand...

My experience with delivery time from China to the middle of the U.S.
For heavier items like battery cells going by ship - 70 to 90 days.
For the inverter which was shipped from China by air - 8 days. (that is pretty amazing)