'Carbon tariff' could bring jobs back from China

'Carbon tariff' could bring jobs back from China

www.reportonbusiness.com

CALGARY — Manufacturers that have relocated to China may soon be coming home if the Western world imposes a “carbon tariff” on countries that spew greenhouse gas emissions, according to Jeff Rubin, chief strategist and economist at CIBC World Markets.

Mr. Rubin, in a report issued on Thursday morning, said it is clear Western countries are moving quickly to reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions and he highlighted that China's estimated emissions in 2007 supplanted the United States after rising rapidly through this decade.

Given the increasing emissions imbalance between the developed world and countries such as China, Mr. Rubin said the “only leverage is through trade access,” specifically a “carbon tariff.” Mr. Rubin predicted such a tariff, based on $45 per tonne of carbon dioxide or equivalent, would be $55-billion annually, a 17-per cent levy on all Chinese imports to the U.S. — almost six times greater than the effective current import tariffs.

The main impact of such a scenario would be on companies that have moved their factories to China — and consumers in North America. In a world where carbon emissions cost nothing, moving to China, with its cheap labour, made perfect sense, Mr. Rubin said. That situation is unlikely to last, he added.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Could the shift towards a global carbon tax be about more than just the climate? Are there economic advantages for industrialized nations as well?

www.reportonbusiness.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

[edit on 27-3-2008 by Silenceisall]

reply to post by Silenceisall


Good news, ehh Silence?

Maybe we'll see "Made in the USA" on consumer goods once again.

Will they let me keep my woodburner, though?

Unless the tax is going to amount to millions of dollars per corporation, in other words, enough cash to ofset the benefits of moving to cheap/slave labour countries, it wont do squat to save jobs.

Sounds like spin to get people to support a carbon tax, which most likely will come out of the tax payers pockets.

it is unrealistic to move all the jobs to China, as the loss of the jobs will reduce the power of the Western unemployed people to buy the Chinesse products. So in a way , I wonder how many jobs can migrate the Chine while still having a market in the US?
About the Carbon tax - probably it will still be cheaper to move jobs to China. Some of the Chinesse people are paid with 1 $ / day still... (3 cents an hour in some parts of Asia - jobs provided with generosity by Nike etc - see the movie called " the corporation" )

reply to post by InSpiteOf


The article says: such a tariff, based on $45 per tonne of carbon dioxide or equivalent, would be $55-billion annually, a 17-per cent levy on all Chinese imports to the U.S. — almost six times greater than the effective current import tariffs.

That is, if this tax passes of course. Dont you think there will be a huge corporate lobby against it? I sure do. Further, could not the corporation just raise the cost of goods, forcing the tax burden on the consumer?

I mean, its not like the consumer saw any of the benefits of cheaply made goods, the prices stayed the same after all...

Corporations may not have a choice if governments decide that they need to bring some manufactoring jobs back home. There will be a fight, however, yes.

[edit on 27-3-2008 by Silenceisall]

reply to post by Silenceisall


Maybe im a little jaded, but I doubt the US government will support it becase "the US worker needs a job." In fact, the US government has HELPED ship jobs overseas. The US is not a free market (IMO) its a Corporate Capitalist market.

Excellent idea. What better way to stifle international trade at a time when the world economy is already a bit unstable.

Did these people learn ANYTHING about the causes of the Great Depression?

Excellent idea. What better way to stifle international trade at a time when the world economy is already a bit unstable.

Did these people learn ANYTHING about the causes of the Great Depression?

i guess the only solution would come from the normal people - if you ban import products from your home (sure, except petrol haha) you will protect the local jobs. buy food from the local markets / producers etc could make a big diference.