The manufacturing boom? Still waiting. But here's what actually happened: America's import map got redrawn, and China's slice of it keeps shrinking.

The promised industrial revival never really materialized on the scale promised. Factories didn't flood back home. Yet the trade war did accomplish something—reshaping where American companies source their goods. Supply chains shifted. Alternative markets emerged.

China's dominance as the primary import source has been systematically eroded. Not eliminated, but weakened. Diversification became the new playbook. Vietnam, Mexico, other Southeast Asian nations picked up the slack.

So while the grand vision fell short, the trade landscape transformed anyway. Just not in the headline-grabbing way that was sold. The shift happened quietly, through procurement decisions and logistics rewiring rather than ribbon-cutting ceremonies at new plants.