Trade Wars

As gun control is one of the hottest topics right now, I don't really want to talk about it. I have my opinions, which probably conflicts with many of yours, and definitely most of the people in our state. But right now, I want to talk about the what the most current news is right now - tariffs. While I don't know much about tariffs, trade, and stuff like that, I will do my best to explain.

A tariff is basically a tax/additional price on imports from other places (countries). These are current because Trump is ordering (the consideration of) tariffs on Chinese goods (most recently an additional $100 billion), and China is imposing tariffs on American goods. Basically, China has to pay more to import goods to America and America has to pay more to import goods to China. This exchange of tariffs keeps going back and forth, a trade war.

Let's put this into perspective. According to the United States Census Bureau (1), in 2017 the US imported over $505 billion worth of goods from China, while exporting only $130 billion to China. America is paying China a ton of money for goods, and not getting much back (a $375 billion deficit).

The article I read is from Politico, so it's not CNN/Washington Post (to some people) or Fox News/Breitbart (to some people), but it is leaning towards liberal. It is titled "How Trump could lose a trade war with China" written by Doug Palmer (2). Palmer points out the president's unpopularity domestically and internationally, which can affect the support of allies. The loss of allied support could turn this economic issue into a political one, meaning that these lost allies (as well as China) could withdraw support from the United States in other matters, such as military support (though unlikely), trade deals, support in general, and other diplomatic situations.

So what do these tariffs and this trade war mean to us, the citizens, right now? Well, yesterday (April 6) the stock market crashed 450 points. Also, as you know, there are a ton of products made in China. According to a graphic from the Atlantic (3), in 2011 China manufactured 90.6% of all personal computers in the world, 63% of the world's shoes, 49.8% of the world's pork, and 70.6% of the world's cell phones. If China cuts down on exporting some of these products (sending less) to the US or makes these products more expensive, they will make it harder and/or more expensive to buy. There are other possibilities that could be outcomes from this trade war, like other countries cutting back on trade to the US, but these seem less likely.

This trade war doesn't seem to have an end in the near future, but hopefully, it will. So far, China has imposed tariffs on 106 US products in response to America's and has said that they will continue with more. While most countries agree that China's trade laws need to be reformed, and they are hurting countries like America's economies, as Palmer points out, Trump's proposition is not the right way to go. There should be a different, more moderate, way to "ask" China to reform its laws rather than imposing this amount of tariffs, inciting this trade war.


Citations
(1) United States Census Bureau - "Trade in Goods with China"
(2) Politico - "How Trump could lose a trade war with China" by Doug Palmer
(3) The Atlantic - "China's Dominance in Manufacturing - in One Chart"