China has unveiled a sophisticated new stealth fighter jet at an air show, in a show of muscle during a visit by US president Barack Obama for an Asia-Pacific summit. [ABC news | November 11, 2014] President Xi Jinping has been pushing to strengthen China’s 2.3 million-strong armed forces, and Chinese defence companies and…
Dr. Ralph Gomory gave an excellent presentation today at the CPA webinar, “Global Trade and Conflicting National Interests.” His materials are below. Stumo Editorial Summary: Trade commentators and most economists believe that more trade with any country is always win-win for both countries. But the reality of both the Ricardo model and the real world…
MUMBAI, India — India and the United States reached an agreement on Thursday over food stockpiles, removing a major obstacle to a global trade deal that has been stalled for months. [by Neha Thirani Bagri | November 13, 2014 | NY Times] The pact, which precedes a meeting this weekend of the Group of 20…
Element Electronics boasts of being the only American-owned and American-assembled television company. Flashy red-white-and-blue packaging helps it do business with Walmart as part of the retailer’s quarter-trillion-dollar “Made in USA” initiative. But according to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) complaint filed Tuesday, the company isn’t making anything in America after all. [by Alan Pyke |…
The mid-term elections made clear American voters want Washington to better address high unemployment and stagnant wages. Yet, on issues ranging from energy to immigration to trade, President Obama continues to put politics ahead of strengthening American families. [by Peter Morici | November 13, 2014] Senator Mary Landrieu (D., LA) is locked in a tight…
This week, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman announced a “breakthrough” agreement between the United States and China to expand the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Information Technology Agreement (ITA), which eliminates tariffs among 54 countries in high-tech products. Froman enthusiastically noted that the ITA was last amended in 1996, when “most of the GPS technology… [and]…
A trio of House Democrats said Wednesday that neither fast-track nor an Asia-Pacific trade deal have any chance of passing in the lame-duck session or in the next Congress. [by Vicki Needham | November 12, 2014 | The Hill] The lawmakers — Reps. Rosa DeLauro (Conn.), Louise Slaughter (N.Y.) and Alan Grayson (Fla.) — agreed…
The mercantilism enabling trade cheerleaders use bad math to befuddle those who don’t think through the information. The only math that truly matters is “what impact on net trade?” The most recent example is the Information Technology Agreement (ITA) supposedly agreed to between the US and China. A Politico story says… The White House said…
On the second day of the Lean Accounting summit put on by Lean Fronteirs, Cheryl Jekiel, author of Lean HR, gave the keynote presentation on “The Future of the Horizontal Lean Enterprise, Rev Up Your Engines.” [Reposted from: savingusmanufacturing.com | Michele Nash-Hoff | November 12, 2014] On the second day of the Lean Accounting summit…
TOKYO — Japan’s prime minister has affirmed his commitment to reaching a broad trade deal with the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations, even as Tokyo stands accused of refusing to budge on the thorny issue of agricultural tariffs. [by Anna Fifield | November 7, 2014 | Washington Post] The Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade…
