By Michael Stumo Former White House CEA and NEC chairs again reveal why our economy declined and stagnated under their collective watches.  They worry about speculative diplomatic repercussions from dealing with overcapacity and national security issues as the US considers neutralizing the problem.  Not a word from these Very Smart People about other countries who should, perhaps,…

Call it international trade’s (re)work in progress, following the G20 meeting, which produced: [Daily News| July 11, 2017 |Inside US Trade] A united front on overcapacity issues, with an emphasis on steel – and some target deadlines for OECD recommendations on “concrete policy solutions that reduce steel excess capacity.” A flurry of comments from President Trump,…

The Pentagon is taking initial steps to more closely enforce so-called “Buy American” laws, elevating a series of Depression-era statutes that require manufacturers to rely on U.S. materials when they make guns, equipment, uniforms and food for the nation’s military. [Aaron Gregg| July 9, 2017 |Washington Post] A June 30 memo from the Office of Management and Budget…

Originally appears on Global Trade Magazine The Trump administration has made public its intent to seek amendments to the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement. The administration has said that USTR will request a special session under Article 22.2 of the agreement, which will start a 30-day clock requiring both countries’ officials to meet and discuss amendments. In…

The White House is planning to poach a leading Republican congressional trade staffer to fill a key post on its National Economic Council, according to administration and private sector sources with knowledge of the staff move. [ADAM BEHSUDI , ANDREW RESTUCCIA and BEN WHITE | June 6, 2017 |Politico] Everett Eissenstat, now the chief Republican trade counsel for the Senate…

HAMBURG — Negotiations for a joint statement on trade at the G20 leaders summit are running into similar roadblocks to previous negotiations for communiqués under the Trump presidency, including wording on protectionism and “reciprocal” trade — which the U.S. administration has pushed for in every joint statement with foreign leaders — and whether the World…

Automobile sales may be slowing, e-commerce is putting the squeeze on bricks-and-mortar stores, and overall economic growth is limp. But the labor market has nevertheless managed to charge ahead. [PATRICIA COHEN| July 7, 2017 |The New York Times] Employers added an impressive 222,000 jobs in June, the government reported on Friday. Although the jobless rate ticked up slightly to 4.4…

Folks who passed their intro econ class know that it is net exports (exports minus imports) that affect output and employment. Not exports alone. Nonetheless, we find people like Washington Post columnist Robert Samuelson telling readers that Trump’s decision to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) might undermine his agenda because “being outside these agreements [a…

By Jeff Ferry, CPA Research Director At last month’s Paris Air Show, China showed off its latest military drone, an unmanned intelligent computer-controlled vehicle called the CH-5.  Military experts were impressed. The CH-5 has a range of 20,000 kilometers (12,000 miles), and can stay aloft for up to 50 hours. “You can just imagine a…

Any country that devalues their currency in order to take unfair advantage of the United States, which is many countries, will be met with sharply. And that includes tariffs and taxes. –Candidate Trump, Pennsylvania, 6/28/16 [John R. Hansen | July 7, 2017 | ABCD Now] Messages like this resonated with voters across the nation during the…