China makes more things than any other country in the world. Now it also makes some of the newest technology. What does that mean for companies everywhere?
Harder version: read this lesson at C1 level →
Look at each word. Say what you think it means. Then tap the card.
Tap a card to see the meaning.
Write one word from the cards in each gap.
1. My uncle works in a that makes shoes.
2. Japan s a lot of oil because it has very little of its own.
3. Driving fast in the rain is a big .
4. You need a to sell alcohol in a shop.
5. She ran 100 metres in 10.5 seconds — a new school !
6. Our café buys all its coffee from one .
1. factory · 2. import · 3. risk · 4. licence · 5. record · 6. supplier
Read each part. Then answer the questions before you read the next part.
In 2010, China became the country that makes the most things in the world. Before that, it was the United States.
Today China makes almost three in every ten things that factories make in the whole world. That is much more than the United States.
In 2025, China exported goods worth about 3.77 trillion dollars. It imported much less. So China sold the world about 1.2 trillion dollars more than it bought.
That was a record. No country in history had done it before.
In the same year, the US put higher tariffs on Chinese goods. China sold less to America — but it sold more to other places: South-East Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe.
True or false? Click your answer.
1. China became the world’s biggest maker of things in 2010.
2. In 2025, China bought more from the world than it sold.
3. China sold more to other regions when US tariffs went up.
For many years, people said: “China makes things cheap, but other countries invent them.” That is not true any more.
Look at solar panels. An international energy organisation, the IEA, says that China makes more than eight in ten of the parts for the world’s solar panels. It also says China helped to make solar power cheaper for everyone.
Then, in January 2025, a small Chinese company called DeepSeek showed a new AI chatbot. It was very good — and the company said it cost much less to build than American AI.
Many people downloaded it. Investors were worried. On 27 January, the American chip company Nvidia lost about 589 billion dollars of value in one day. No company in US history had lost so much in a single day.
True or false? Click your answer.
1. China makes more than eight in ten of the parts for solar panels.
2. DeepSeek is a big American company.
3. Nvidia lost a lot of value in one day because of DeepSeek.
Some metals are very important. Rare earths are used in strong magnets for wind turbines, computers, robots and many other things.
China cleans and prepares about nine in ten of the world’s rare earths. So many companies depend on China.
In 2025, during the fight about tariffs, China said: companies need a licence to export some of these metals. Factories in other countries were worried.
In October 2025, the presidents of the US and China met in South Korea and agreed to stop part of the fight for a year. In 2026, they made the agreement longer, until January 2027.
Companies don’t want to leave China — but they don’t want one big risk. So many of them add a second supplier in another country. Apple, for example, said in 2025 that most iPhones for the US would come from India. Phones for most other countries still came from China.
But a second supplier usually costs more. Who should pay?
True or false? Click your answer.
1. China prepares about nine in ten of the world’s rare earths.
2. Apple stopped making all its phones in China.
3. A second supplier is usually cheaper.
This story is full of comparisons: who is bigger, who is cheaper, who is the first. Here is how to make them.
Short adjectives (one syllable): + -er than / the + -est
China is bigger than the US in manufacturing. It is the biggest maker of things in the world.
cheap → cheaper → the cheapest · big → bigger (double the last letter) · large → larger
Adjectives ending in -y: -y → -ier / -iest
easy → easier → the easiest · busy → busier
Long adjectives: more … than / the most …
A second supplier is more expensive than one supplier.
Rare earths are some of the most important metals today.
Irregular: good → better → the best · bad → worse → the worst
Remember: use than (not that or then), and never more cheaper.
| Adjective | Comparing two | The top one |
|---|---|---|
| cheap | cheaper than | the cheapest |
| big | bigger than | the biggest |
| important | more important than | the most important |
| good | better than | the best |
Use the adjective in brackets in the right form.
1. In 2025, China had trade surplus in history. (large)
2. Solar power is than it was ten years ago. (cheap)
3. For many companies, a safe supply is than a low price. (important)
4. DeepSeek’s chatbot was than many people expected. (good)
5. Having only one supplier is than having two. (risky)
1. the largest · 2. cheaper · 3. more important · 4. better · 5. riskier
Each sentence has one mistake. Say the correct sentence out loud, then check.
1. China is more bigger than the US in manufacturing.
2. This supplier is cheaper that the other one.
3. It was the most big record in history.
4. Our new phone is gooder than the old one.
5. Solar panels are more cheap now.
1. China is bigger than the US. (no more with -er)
2. This supplier is cheaper than the other one. (than, not that)
3. It was the biggest record in history. (short adjective: -est)
4. Our new phone is better than the old one. (irregular)
5. Solar panels are cheaper now. (short adjective: -er)
Take your time. Short sentences are fine.
Tell me the story in your own words. Six or seven sentences is enough.
Compare two things from the story or from your life: two countries, two suppliers, two shops, two apps.
Which is cheaper? Which is better? Which is the most important for you?
Think about three things you use every day: your phone, your clothes, your food, your computer.
Where do you think they come from? Would you pay more for something made in your own country? Why or why not?
You work for a company that sells wind turbines. All your magnets come from one supplier in China. A second supplier in another country costs 15% more.
Your boss asks: “What should we do?” Give your answer and one reason.