By Jeff Ferry, CPA Chief Economist The US trade deficit in January 2019 shrunk dramatically, coming in at $51.1 billion, $8.8 billion below the December level and $1.9 billion below the year-ago January level. Department of Commerce data published on Wednesday showed the improvement in our trade deficit was driven in part by a large…

At its Annual Trade Conference, the Coalition for a Prosperous America recognized three leading political figures for their activities to improve US international trade, the economy, national security, and America’s global political standing with its annual American Trade Hero awards. [Jeff Ferry | March 25, 2019 | CPA Chief Economist] The three award recipients were…

Editors note: President Trump discusses China trade, auto tariffs, and EU relations in a Fox TV interview aired on Friday.  WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump said trade negotiations with China were progressing and a final agreement “will probably happen,” adding that his call for tariffs to remain on Chinese imported goods for some…

Editors note: Commerce Department decision is likely to put fines up to 450 percent on steel from China transshipped through Vietnam. The Commerce Department has issued steep final duties on imports of certain cold-rolled steel products from Vietnam that are produced with Chinese material, determining that Vietnamese exporters have been circumventing existing antidumping and countervailing duty…

Excerpt: If Commerce finds that structural steel imports are materially injuring or threatening material injury to domestic producers, preliminary duties will be imposed on imports. [March 20, 2019 | Inside U.S. Trade] Imports of fabricated structural steel from Canada, Mexico and China could be harming domestic producers, the U.S. International Trade Commission ruled in a preliminary…

Editors note: New Council of Economic Advisers report says that even after the Trump tariffs, the average US tariff rate is just 2.6%, still one of the lowest in the world. Tariffs imposed by President Trump last year caused the average U.S. tariff rate to jump by nearly 75 percent, according to the latest “Economic Report…

The current trade negotiations between Washington and Beijing are more than a year in the making. Op-ed by Michael Stumo, originally appeared in The Columbus Dispatch on March 12, 2019 March 14, 2019 Starting in 2018, the Trump administration imposed tariffs on $250 billion worth of imports from China. It was President Donald Trump’s stern…

There is increasing evidence that Trump’s tariffs are working to expand American manufacturing and create jobs. [Michele Nash- Hoff | March 6, 2019 | savingmanufacturing.com According to the February 11, 2019 U.S. Manufacturing Technology Order Report press release of The Association for Manufacturing Technology, “The year- end order total for 2018 was $5.5 billion, up 19 percent from…

Editor’s note: Interesting that Trade Ambassador Lighthizer quotes Nancy Pelosi’s opposition to China joining the WTO in this statement.  AMBASSADOR LIGHTHIZER: Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Brady, distinguished members of the Committee: it is a pleasure to be here today and to discuss this very important issue. [February 27, 2019 | United States Trade Representative] I think…