Trade correspondent L.C. reports: The planned Trump administration tariffs of 10% on $200 bn. of Chinese imports will hit US consumers directly — unlike the previous tariffs, which were on producer goods (steel and aluminum) and thus hit manufacturers first. The list US Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer has prepared contains 6,031 products. The tariffs […]
Trade war with China has officially begun; allies also retaliating
Trade correspondent L.C. writes: The US confrontation with China ratcheted up on July 6th with the imposition of 25% tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese exports to the US. China immediately responded, as expected, by imposing 25% tariffs on $29.6 billion in US exports. The US tariffs were imposed under Section 301 of its trade […]
President’s Space Force strongly endorsed by Angelo Codevilla
Missile-defense expert Angelo Codevilla has endorsed President Trump’s call for the formation of a new, sixth military branch, the Space Force. The President, fed up with slow-walking by his military chiefs and their bureaucratic underlings at the Pentagon, announced his proposal on national tv and backed it up subsequently in a Fourth of July message […]
President unconcerned about WTO fate, 20-25% foreign car tariffs
Trade correspondent L.C. writes: A report that President Trump is planning to exit the WTO stirred much excitement over the weekend. The least of the problems of the alleged planning document, the Fair And Reciprocal Trade act, would have been its acronym. Though it was denied that President Trump actually plans to leave the WTO […]
Trump escalates trade threats against China but priorities unclear
Trade correspondent L.C. writes: The Trump administration is continuing to escalate its trade pressures on China, but it’s not clear whether the priority is limiting technology transfer to China or improving the US trade balance with that country, nor why it is risking progress on either goal by simultaneously launching trade battles against allies and […]
