Trade correspondent L.C. writes: China is reportedly prepared to offer to boost imports from the US by one trillion dollars. This would supposedly correct the entire bilateral trade imbalance by 2024 . Is China’s offer to be taken seriously? Any pledge by Beijing to increase imports runs up against a tough reality — the slowing […]
President’s bid for more trade power likely to fail
Trade correspondent L.C. reports: The White House has drafted a “US Reciprocal Trade Act” that would give the president authority to impose tariffs unilaterally on specific products and countries. The president wants to promote it in his January 29th State of the Union address and would like it to be introduced in Congress before then. […]
Do Section 232 tariffs violate the Constitution?
Trade correspondent L.C. reports: The Court of International Trade in New York heard oral arguments on December 19th against President Trump’s use of the Section 232 (national-defense related) provisions of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. At issue are the tariffs imposed on steel and aluminum and pending decisions on automotive imports and uranium. Both […]
Mattis resignation caps bad week for Trump
President Trump has been correct in shifting US military efforts away from never-ending jihadist wars and redirecting them to existential threats to the US posed by China and Russia. But this approach can only be viable if the US provides backup to the allies who are fighting the jihadists in our stead. The US military […]
President unconcerned with tariff effect on economic outlook
Trade correspondent L.C. reports: With President Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping less than a week away, the outcome for trade and tariffs remains uncertain. Disagreement among the US president’s advisers continues. President Trump himself seems unconcerned with the impact the trade uncertainty is having on the health of the world economy. On Thanksgiving […]
