The U.S. Department of Commerce (“DOC”) has launched an investigation into the alleged illegal dumping of certain hot-rolled steel flat products by seven countries into the American market. Hot-rolled steel is used in appliances, automotive products, heavy machinery, machine parts, commercial construction and transportation equipment. The U.S. Department of Commerce (“DOC”) has launched an investigation…
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When John Pierpont Morgan bought Andrew Carnegie’s steel business and combined it with two competitors to create U.S. Steel in 1901, the result was the world’s first billion-dollar corporation. Its roughly $1.4 billion market value would translate into about $33 billion in current dollars. But the company is worth less than a tenth of that today, at…
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by Michael Stumo One of the biggest fibs told by trade deal supporters has been that the deals enhance good governance and the rule of law. There is zero support for that proposition. There is rampant corruption, collusion with drug lords, human rights abuses and other egregious violations in many countries we have bilateral trade…
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WASHINGTON—The White House is preparing a menu of sanctions against Chinese state-owned enterprises and private companies that officials believe benefited from the cybertheft of U.S. corporate secrets, several people familiar with the matter said. [ by Damian Paletta and Bob Davis | August 31, 2015 | WSJ ] The White House hasn’t decided definitively…
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The Department of Labor reported this morning that America’s manufacturing sector lost 17,000 jobs in August. [Reposted from the Alliance for American Manufacturing website | Taylor Garland | September 4, 2015] The #AAMeter, which tracks President Obama’s promise to create 1 million new manufacturing jobs in his second term, decreased to +382,000 jobs, after revisions…
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Five Chinese navy ships are currently operating in the Bering Sea off the coast of Alaska, Pentagon officials said Wednesday, marking the first time the U.S. military has seen Chinese naval activity in the area. [ by Jeremy Page in Beijing and Gordon Lupold in Washington | September 2, 2015 | WSJ ] The…
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The Labor Department reported the economy added a disappointing 173,000 jobs in August. The unemployment rate fell to 5.1 percent largely because fewer Americans sought work. GDP grew at a 3.7 percent annual rate in the second quarter. The balance of this year and next, the pace is expected to moderate to 2.6 to…
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The disconcerting downward trend — consecutive record months, on track for three straight record years — could ultimately lead to a $1 trillion manufacturing trade deficit in 2016. [Reposted from Industry Week | Matt LaWell | September 3, 2015] Two prominent manufacturing and economic analysts suggest that U.S. manufacturing trade is, in fact, spiraling into…
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by Michael Stumo: Why would the White House issue a veto threat on currency legislation last May and now call upon Congress to pass a currency bill? White House Spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters today Congress needs to pass legislation to give the Administration “additional tools to counter unfair currency policies by China or anybody…
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A fight over how cars are assembled is pitting North America’s auto industry against Japan’s in a dispute now holding up a major trade agreement spanning the Pacific. [by William Mauldin and Dudley Althaus | September 3, 2015 | WSJ ] The spat over which cars should be eligible for duty-free trade surfaced during…
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