As Christmas rush looms, how do China-made toys find their way to the US?

With the festive season on the horizon, we trace toys from factories in China to US shelves. China is the world's largest toymaker, producing the majority of toys on sale in the US On the underside of most children's toys on sale in the US you'll find the same three words – "Made in China". Nearly eight in 10 toys (78.3%) imported into the country in 2024 came from China, according to US government figures. , external Last year, toys imported from China were worth $9.8bn (£7.4bn), trade figures show. , external With Christmas on the horizon, the toy industry in the US and elsewhere is about to have its busiest time of the year by far.

As retailers prepare their stocks for the festive rush, be they online giants or "mom-and-pop" physical stores, the BBC World Service's Follow the Money series traces how a toy gets from a factory in China to the US. And where the money goes. Guangdong province, which neighbours Hong Kong in southern China, is the heart of the country's toy manufacturing industry. In the city of Dongguan workers on the floor of the Mihox factory pop plastic toys out of steel moulds, and pile them into crates ready for painting. The company says it employs more than 800 people and makes around 55 million