By Jeff Ferry CPA Chief Economist Trade data for November 2018 published Wednesday by the Department of Commerce indicates that the Trump Administration’s tariffs may finally be improving our balance of trade. The November goods and services deficit came in at $49.3 billion, 11.5 percent better than October’s figure of $55.7 billion. Equally significant, the…
“Many of our members have been directly impacted by China’s ongoing economic aggression…. “Many of our members have been directly impacted by China’s ongoing economic aggression. In tonight’s State of the Union, we were gratified to hear President Trump reaffirm his commitment to confronting predatory trade. We look forward to working with his administration on…
Editor’s note: Steel fabrication products were left out of the Section 232 tariffs on steel. The best method of implementing tariffs is to cover the supply chain, so foreign cheating companies are unable to circumvent the tariffs by simply selling downstream products. This petition by the American Institute of Steel Construction seeks to remedy the omission…
CPA OP-ed: Huawei Case Shows China Keeps Stealing Its Way to Success In 2001, when China joined the WTO and officially entered the world trading system, politicians and economists of every stripe confidently predicted that China would soon become very similar to many other Western market economies… February 6, 2019 In 2001, when China joined…
Editors note: The money quote, “It was highly unlikely China would agree to new disciplines targeting changes to its trade practices and economic system, the USTR said.” [David Lawder, Chris Prentice | February 4, 2019 | Reuters ] Negotiating new World Trade Organization rules to try to rein in China’s “mercantilist” trade practices would be…
By Jeff Ferry, CPA Chief Economist Three things happened last week that made me feel more confident than ever that US tariffs are working and China is losing the so-called “trade war,” which is not a war at all but simply a battle to enable the US economy to stand once again on its own…
Editor’s note: This Economic Policy Institute’s study quantifies the extent to which creating or destroying jobs in manufacturing has large indirect jobs ripple effects as compared to the service sector. Anyone involved in economic policy planning should understand these effects. [Josh Bivens | January 23, 2019 | Economic Policy Institute] When it comes to…
Editors Note: This is an important new expansion of the federal Buy America program to state level projects funded by federal money. CPA issued a press release in support of the announcement yesterday. President Trump on Thursday signed an executive order aimed at strengthening “buy American” principles in federal infrastructure programs, a move that builds off interagency…
Editor’s note: The US-China trade talks finished today. These are the talks arising from the 90 day tariff delay agreed to by Presidents Trump and Xi last November at the G20 meeting in Argentina. CPA is supportive of Ambassador Lighthizer and the trade team, but believes the fundamental nature of China’s long term economic, military…
Focus on state-level infrastructure projects will close potential gaps in coverage Washington. The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) today praised President Trump’s executive order to strengthen Buy America preferences for infrastructure projects. While Buy America typically covers federal projects, the executive order will now extend such requirements to state-level projects that receive federal funding. “President Trump and…
