Editor’s note. The 232 tariffs have succeeded in getting the steel industry to the 80% capacity utilization target. Steel prices are now below pre-tariff levels, because the industry can be profitable with the same prices as before because fixed costs are spread across more output. The domestic steel industry last week exceeded the capacity utilization…
Excerpt. “The Wall Street and globalist wing of the administration seem to be pushing for a short-term deal that we know will not be sufficient for our long-term interests,” [Michael Stumo] said. President Trump stoked expectations Monday for a successful conclusion to U.S.-China trade talks, saying he anticipated signing an agreement with Chinese President Xi Jinping…
Editor’s note: Globalization inherently lessens the wage share of the economy, even if trade deals are “fair”. Localization is not explicitly on the agenda, but it arguably should be. Workers’ slice of the pie has been shrinking, confounding economists [Paul Kiernan | February 23, 2019 | Wall Street Journal] WASHINGTON—With U.S. unemployment near lows seen…
Editors note: The use of tariffs continues to gain popularity. The prior opposition to imposing tariffs is slowly morphing into opposition to reducing them. BEIJING (Reuters) – A top U.S. business lobby in China said on Tuesday that a majority of its member companies favored the United States retaining tariffs on Chinese goods while Washington…