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Trump Ups Ante on China, Threatens Duties on Nearly All its Imports (reuters.com)
U.S. President Donald Trump warned on Friday that he was ready to slap tariffs on virtually all Chinese imports into the United States, threatening duties on another $267 billion in Chinese goods on top of $200 billion in imports now primed for levies in coming days. Reuters: The moves would sharply escalate Trump's trade war with Beijing over his demands for major changes in economic, trade and technology policy. China has threatened retaliation, which could include action against U.S. companies operating there. Hours after a public comment period closed on his $200 billion China tariff list, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he was "being strong on China because I have to be."
"The $200 billion we are talking about could take place very soon depending on what happens with them. To a certain extent its going to be up to China," Trump said. "And I hate to say this, but behind that is another $267 billion ready to go on short notice if I want. That totally changes the equation." [...] The $200 billion list, which includes some consumer products such as cameras and recording devices, luggage, handbags, tires and vacuum cleaners, would be subject to tariffs of 10 percent to 25 percent. Cell phones, the biggest U.S. import from China, have so far been spared, but would be engulfed if Trump activates the $267 billion tariff list. Further reading: Apple says Trump's China tariffs are going to hurt the company.
"The $200 billion we are talking about could take place very soon depending on what happens with them. To a certain extent its going to be up to China," Trump said. "And I hate to say this, but behind that is another $267 billion ready to go on short notice if I want. That totally changes the equation." [...] The $200 billion list, which includes some consumer products such as cameras and recording devices, luggage, handbags, tires and vacuum cleaners, would be subject to tariffs of 10 percent to 25 percent. Cell phones, the biggest U.S. import from China, have so far been spared, but would be engulfed if Trump activates the $267 billion tariff list. Further reading: Apple says Trump's China tariffs are going to hurt the company.
Trump then went on to mispronounce the word "anonymous" multiple times and walked off stage.
I don't know about the rest of /. but my wages have not kept pace with inflation. Cheap foreign goods has been the only thing that's kept my head above water. Now, you can argue that my wages will start climbing as a result of this, but a) that's not going to happen right away and in the meantime it means big inflation I can ill afford and b) it's not likely to happen since even if the factories come back they're likely to be modern factories heavy on automation, meaning few jobs.
Tariffs are good at protecting an existing business, but you have to have a business to protect for a tariff to work. The US has manufacturing and we were already doing a good job of protecting it. We've doubled out manufacturing output in the last 40 years (while cutting the workforce by 1/3 due to automation, I might add). Broad tariffs at this point are just closing the barn door after the cows got out.
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Trump's not going to do shit about China. They're laughing at him and they know all they've got to do is wait now. It won't be long.
Plus, any further tariffs will be written on one of those pieces of paper his staff has been snatching off his desk to keep him from fucking up completely.
You are welcome on my lawn.
So much economic stupidity. At least he gave tax breaks to businesses and bailed out the industries he's nearly killed as he taxed the hell out of their supply chain.
"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."
Isn't it time to look at a different tool for changing the relationship between the US and China? I can't imagine this hurting anybody but the US consumer - AND I suspect that it could be a boon for other countries looking for lower cost goods for their economies.
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I'm fine with buying less shit from China, or paying more for what I actually do need to buy (from elsewhere or from China when necessary).
It ultimately means China gets less of US money. A lot less. It's China who loses here, not the US. The US is hundreds of billions in trade deficit to China. China has far, far more to lose in this game of chicken.
China can end it all now if they just agree to one simple thing. Fair trade. If China doesn't like the tariffs and restrictions they can get rid of the same exact tariffs and restrictions they impose on us, and poof, we reciprocate.
Trump only knows one thing: how to make threats until he gets what he wants. That childish behavior works really well against your parents and your sycophant "friends" but it's not a great strategy to use on the world stage. The previous tariffs are being blamed for the increased trade deficit this quarter and these additional tariffs will likely make that worse. It's like Trump is determined to erase any gains he can attempt to take credit for with the improved economy. Maybe the writer of the NYT op-ed can sabotage these tariffs.
"The sudden loss of access to previously affordable goods will encourage workers to be more passionate about their career. This will spur the economy further and reduce the gap between the rich and the poor." - government analyst probably.
Trump's not going to do shit about China. They're laughing at him and they know all they've got to do is wait now. It won't be long.
Plus, any further tariffs will be written on one of those pieces of paper his staff has been snatching off his desk to keep him from fucking up completely.
People who can read minds and predict the future belong on late night cable TV shows, 900 number call-ins on billboards, and newspaper horoscopes.
Alternative link for Canadians and Brits: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
And if thats TLDW for you, at least watch from 14:54 to see how Trump got his Trade with China expert.
Of course news about a fake are Fake News.
So assuming all the tariffs are enacted, where is the 467 billion spent? Because if you say to support K-12 education, SS, or the environment then great, if you say to buy more billion dollar warplanes and to start a star wars program, then FU.
If you want people to look at the government report, link to the government report, not fucking Breitbart.
I suggest you read this article if you think wages are outpacing inflation.
If you completely surround an enemy, his soldiers will fight bravely. If you leave them a path to escape, they will run away.
This is actually a pretty good time to put some trade pressure on China. They've reached the end of an era of explosive growth and the transition to something more sustainable is bound to put pressure on them. A trade war can really hurt them right now (as it can hurt us as well).
This is a time to have your exit strategy worked out. If we have a shrewd and accurate idea of what we can feasibly walk away with, we could do quite well out of a little trade saber rattling. The thing is if we don't have an exit strategy, we can hurt our own economy and give the Chinese regime a legitimate scapegoat for its own problems.
So this is a test of the president's acumen. Does he have the brains to know when to walk away from a conflict?
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Trump believers think they're winning, even though they're losing. This is one sign of cultism.
Oh, please ... that is such bullshit it isn't funny.
America hasn't been giving away their wealth, American corporations have been systematically outsourcing jobs to other countries to cut costs and maximize profits, and therefore shareholder value.
The entirety of how the US measures its wealth is based on shareholder mother fucking goddamned value.
Know what's happened in the process? Much of your populace is getting left behind as people in developing nations are happy to do the same job for less money. Guess what? There's your free market biting you in the ass.
America hasn't been giving away it's wealth, it's greedy corporations have stripped jobs and production out of the US, shifted the money to the 1%, and average Americans have discovered that they're not part of that gravy train.
The problem Americans haven't figured out isn't that "America is giving away her wealth", it's that the wealth isn't owned by the citizens, and the corporations and rich assholes who do own it are keeping ever more of it for themselves.
Anything else would be socialism and evil right? Isn't this what you guys claim to want??
America is a victim of the fucking system they've been foisting on the rest of the world for decades, the difference being in this Ponzi scheme the American people have figured out they're not on the winning side, because nobody gives a fuck about them.
Don't blame the rest of the world for the fact that your own industries have gutted your economy and left you with nothing.
America wants access to everyone else's markets, but is an incredibly protectionist economy.
Boo fucking hoo, we're so upset for you. Because you know what, your Americas companies have been buying companies in our countries for decades, gutting them, and moving the jobs elsewhere.
If you're looking for sympathy from the rest of the world, you're a couple of fucking decades too late. The problem is you guys actually seem to believe that you're entitled to a better life than the rest of the world.
Enjoy the shithole country Trump is helping build for you, and ask yourself, just who is going to be left as your allies? Because the rest of the world is losing any interest in what benefits America if it comes at our expense.
If *I* want.
Not advisers, not the american people, I.
"*I* am the state"
me me me, I I I. He has all the situational awareness of a toddler.
As a potential lottery winner, I totally support tax cuts for the wealthy
This is largely bullshit. They certainly INVOKED the spectre of national defense, but the steel and aluminum tariffs are being applied on all steel and aluminum, not just stuff used for defense. And the tariffs even apply to countries like Canada, who aren't shipping sub-standard metals. If the goal was to curb dumping of low-grade metals onto the market, it's not doing its job. The number of American companies applying for exemptions from this absurd tax is orders of magnitude higher than what the government was prepared to deal with. In many cases, US companies literally can't get the steel they need from ANY American provider. How is THAT good for anyone, let alone national defense?
The U.S doesn't keep bases in Europe out of good will. It does because we want Russia to know that a potential war will be fought at their borders and very far away from ours
I wonder if WTO will survive that moves between US and China. Its rules were already seen as unfair by many poor countries, and now everyone sees they do not apply to big players.
In August, average hourly earnings for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 10 cents to $27.16. Over the year, average hourly earnings have increased by 77 cents, or 2.9 percent. Average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees increased by 7 cents to $22.73 in August. (See tables B-3 and B-8.)
So, I guess unless you're a management type that inflation rate of 2.9%--the highest level since 2012--is probably going to hurt a bit. Given that this next round will effectively hit everything on the shelves of Walmart, things might get rather uncomfortable indeed for his voting base.
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