Welcome to the Trade Wars

a reply to: links234

Hasn't anyone (mainly the "left") figured out how Trump works yet? He's not a dummy even though you guys want so badly for him to look like one.

So there are asymmetrical tarrifs on US goods vs EU goods. A 7.5% difference (US pays more) in car tariffs. The EU is comfy with their 10% tax and won't give it up w/o a fight.

So, trump says we are going to tax you 20% on all (European) vehicles to "stimulate" sales of domestic cars in the US and this makes the EU mad.

Now if Trump says "ok, I'll negotiate with you, I'll drop the 20% tariff to 10%, which is half way, which is reasonable, since that is what you tax the US for cars". This makes trump look like he is giving 1/2 way on the negotiation, while getting a 400% increase in tariff and making it an equal playing field.

There is good reason for what he does.

you guys don't realize this, apples from america cant come into japan
it will kill the industry
That is all trump is typing to tell you, your politicians sold you people out, he is trying to correct it

originally posted by: musicismagic
That is all trump is typing to tell you, your politicians sold you people out, he is trying to correct it

But but but he's just a rich evil old white dude who couldn't care less about his fellow countrymen... lmao I love how even when Trump is fighting for better trade deals it's some how a doomsday event for people on the left. What is the alternative, just let yourself be screwed and bow down to the EU? If you don't want to put up a fight in the first place of course you're going to be taken advantage of.

a reply to: links234

So you have nothing to say about the facts presented to you in your thread that refute your opinion?

Oh, your a socialist. Well that explains why you don't know what you're talking about. Just going against anything Trump does. I'm sure if Bernie proposed this you'd be falling all over yourself to tell us how awesome it was.

a reply to: DBCowboy

Yayyyyy....

Seriously? That would be a bad deal.

*face-desk*

originally posted by: watchitburn
a reply to: links234

So you have nothing to say about the facts presented to you in your thread that refute your opinion?

Oh, your a socialist. Well that explains why you don't know what you're talking about. Just going against anything Trump does. I'm sure if Bernie proposed this you'd be falling all over yourself to tell us how awesome it was.

I doubt that Bernie (whoever that is) would be happy about a trade war.

Why should you be happy? Steel will rise, Aluminium will rise, and all products made out of this will up their prices, too.

Oooooh, you think that *automatically* all the steel and aluminium industry in the USA will dust off their equipment, however long that machinery wasn't used or maybe sold, stolen, destroyed and *bingo* good trusty homeland-produced steel will be produced..

Yeah, about that.
That might take some time.
IF you find an investor who TRUSTS Trump to hold to his tariffs long enough to even open up the works, not even speaking about making a profit before Trump reverses course and the steel- and aluminium-rates will drop to prior, too-cheap-to-produce-them-in-the-USA-AGAIN-prices.

I doubt that this tariff will truely bring one or even better both involved parties benefits.

a reply to: ManFromEurope

I think you're missing the point.

-The current trade deals were heavily lopsided against US interests.

-Continuing those deals did not benefit the US at all.

-Trumps actions are just the logical thing to do, and should have been done long ago.

-These new tariffs will not remain long, but they will bring the parties involved together to reach mutually beneficial deals.

originally posted by: hopenotfeariswhatweneed

originally posted by: DBCowboy
a reply to: links234

Imagine if the US got a better deal as a result.

What if it makes everything more expensive, are your a gambling man?

Then we will make trade deals with other countries. This is a long-term strategy, not short-term.

originally posted by: DBCowboy
a reply to: links234

Imagine if the US got a better deal as a result.

But of course it's Trump, so the obligatory, "Ahhhh! We all gonna die! Ahhhhh!"

Or no let's defend it at all costs...

Is employment high? Are good cheap?

How many people have to suffer to "win".

A trade war doesn't seem like a good negotiating tactic. It seems like a cultural pr stunt.

I am amazed how trump has gotten people to be for taxes, government intervention, price hikes, and export decline...

But sure if he wins we would see a very small change in the day to day. We don't export many goods because we have a service and innovation based economy.

If he looses inflation through the cpi blows up and farmers loose export power.

originally posted by: Middleoftheroad

originally posted by: hopenotfeariswhatweneed

originally posted by: DBCowboy
a reply to: links234

Imagine if the US got a better deal as a result.

What if it makes everything more expensive, are your a gambling man?

Then we will make trade deals with other countries. This is a long-term strategy, not short-term.

The trade war is literally a short term strategy.

Can someone explain how taxes lower the price of consumer goods?

Or how we can have a job surplus, and record employment numbers but we are losing all are jobs to over seas companies?

originally posted by: watchitburn
a reply to: ManFromEurope

I think you're missing the point.

-The current trade deals were heavily lopsided against US interests.

-Continuing those deals did not benefit the US at all.

-Trumps actions are just the logical thing to do, and should have been done long ago.

-These new tariffs will not remain long, but they will bring the parties involved together to reach mutually beneficial deals.

Lopsided for who? The consumer? Nope..
For what jobs? Nope

Literally no economists free market or kenesian think this is a good idea.

What is the desired outcome more factory work?

originally posted by: abe froman
The US has been getting screwed on bad trade deals for years.

Countries that use slave labor are able to undercut US prices and drive down labor in the US.

The many failures in infrastructure in the US are due in large part to crappy foreign steel.

That is so true. Same here in the UK. The media pushes this crap about free trade but who does it benefit. The same people who buy the media, not the average man in the street. The average man in the street has been screwed over by globalism, whole swathes of my country and I guess it's the same with the USA have been pretty much destroyed by the off shoring of our once great industries. If Trump is standing up for the average man in the street then good on him. If it means steel workers will get jobs and their companies can supply their domestic market then how can this be a bad move. About time leaders started looking after their own average men and women in the street rather than a few Corporate bosses who will screw over the average man just to line their own pockets and those of foreign peoples in far away places that don't want to buy our products reciprocally but go out of their way to force theirs on us. What's in it for us when foreign stuff is forced on us when we should be making it ourselves instead and stopping whole swathes of our populations giving up hope of real jobs and becoming alchololics and druggies and ghettos of despair emerging in once reasonably affluent centres. Good on Trump for looking after his own

Maybe you're referring to the tariffs as a short-term strategy, but securing better trade deals for the US is a long-term strategy.

a reply to: luthier

The idea is to 'trigger' liberals. That's the end-game here. Trump could s**t in their breakfast cereal and as long as at least one liberal mentioned how messed up that is, it would be enough for Red Hats to applaud and cheer.

Trump supporters don't care about this country or its freedoms or its laws. They've watched too much Fox News, listened to too much talk radio and read too much Ann Coulter to be more than happy when they perceive the 'other side' losing. That includes when everyone loses because at least the 'liberals' are still losing.

So many people in this thread don't understand simple economics... It's really sad that people think these tariffs will result in anything but making everything more expensive for the consumer.

originally posted by: luthier

originally posted by: watchitburn
a reply to: ManFromEurope

I think you're missing the point.

-The current trade deals were heavily lopsided against US interests.

-Continuing those deals did not benefit the US at all.

-Trumps actions are just the logical thing to do, and should have been done long ago.

-These new tariffs will not remain long, but they will bring the parties involved together to reach mutually beneficial deals.

Lopsided for who? The consumer? Nope..
For what jobs? Nope

Literally no economists free market or kenesian think this is a good idea.

What is the desired outcome more factory work?

Even Trump's own party is balking at these tariffs.

honestly i think the real goal of these tariffs is to push congress into supporting his agenda of implementing a border adjustment tax, he is pushing other nations into a reactionary response and basically saying "hey look at how willing our supposed allies and biggest trade partners are to screw us over and ignore our position, we need to do something about this to correct the imbalance permanently, tariffs wont work in the long run, so lets restart talks about the border adjustment tax i had planned already".

the goal is to gain support for this new tax, this is why trump said "there won't be a trade war", because his goal is to change the american tax structure alone, using whatever means necessary, targeting other nations with tariffs isn't meant to punish those nations or force renegotiation at all, once the purpose is served, implementing this tax, i foresee the tariffs being dropped.

You're right, I'm not an economics major. What I do know is our country is being pillaged by other countries including our allies due to bad deals from the past. Continuing those trade deals won't fix the problem and Trump promised to shake things up. I don't know if they will work or not, but it's better than standing idle doing nothing. I guess go out and vote if you want something different. That's what I did.

The way the trade is set up now, it benefits the consumer market in the states but inhibits the manufacturing market in the states.


We've been a consumer society for too long, in my opinion.


We need to get back to manufacturing. Only way to do that is to renegotiate trade agreements.