# How Chinas Fentanyl Crackdown Disrupts Global Drug Trafficking

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/china-economy-with-fexingo-beijing-s-policies-trade-and-asia-pacific-markets-7871760/how-chinas-fentanyl-crackdown-disrupts-global-drug-trafficking
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/china-economy-with-fexingo-beijing-s-policies-trade-and-asia-pacific-markets-7871760/how-chinas-fentanyl-crackdown-disrupts-global-drug-trafficking.md
Podcast: [China Economy with Fexingo: Beijing's Policies, Trade, and Asia-Pacific Markets](https://stenobird.com/podcast/china-economy-with-fexingo-beijing-s-policies-trade-and-asia-pacific-markets-7871760)
Published: 2026-07-11T18:51:13+00:00
Episode link: https://audio.fexingo.com/business/china-economy/episode-0106.mp3
Audio file: https://audio.fexingo.com/business/china-economy/episode-0106.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/china-economy-with-fexingo-beijing-s-policies-trade-and-asia-pacific-markets-7871760/episodes/how-chinas-fentanyl-crackdown-disrupts-global-drug-trafficking
Duration seconds: 529

## Resource

China has quietly become a key partner in the global fight against fentanyl, a synthetic opioid responsible for tens of thousands of overdose deaths in the United States each year. In this episode, Lucas and Luna examine how Beijing's 2019 scheduling of all fentanyl-related substances as controlled chemicals, combined with aggressive enforcement and information-sharing with US agencies, has slashed illicit exports. They look at the numbers: seizures of precursor chemicals are up 300% since 2020, and the price of fentanyl on American streets has spiked 40%, suggesting supply constraints. But they also explore the unintended consequences — the rise of new synthetic opioids like isotonitazene from Chinese labs, and the shifting of production to Indian and Mexican cartels. With the US-China trade war and mutual suspicion, can this cooperation hold? A nuanced look at a rare area of Beijing-Washington collaboration. #China #Fentanyl #OpioidCrisis #DrugPolicy #USChinaRelations #SyntheticOpioids #Isotonitazene #ChemicalControl #DrugTrafficking #PublicHealth #CriminalJustice #Economics #FexingoBusiness #BusinessPodcast #ChinaEconomy #TradeWar #DEA #PrecursorChemicals Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo

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