U.S. industry is increasingly uncompetitive in global markets and the consequences of fast-growing trade imbalances could be troublesome for the American economy and the international financial system, according to analyst Ernest Preeg of the Manufacturers Alliance / MAPI.
[by Richard McCormack | April 28, 2015 | M&T News]
In a stunning report outlining the precipitous decline of American manufacturing and the “radical restructuring of international trade” away from the United States, Preeg notes that for the first time in history, China posted a trade surplus of almost $1 trillion in 2014. At the same time, the U.S. trade deficit is headed in the opposite direction, surging by -$206 billion between 2009 and 2013 and costing the United States 1.7 million manufacturing jobs.
During the same five-year period, Europe’s export surplus soared by $300 billion and the Chinese surplus “was up by an amazing $492 billion,” notes Preeg. In 2014 alone, the U.S. trade deficit worsened by another -$61 billion, and the trend continues in 2015.
From 2000 to 2013, the U.S. share of global exports dropped from 18 percent to 12 percent. China’s share almost quadrupled during that period, from 6 percent to 23 percent. In the important category of high-technology products, Chinese exports are “far larger and growing faster” than those of the United States.
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