By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst New York-based manufacturing firm Optimation is an example of the unsung, anonymous tooling companies in the middle of the American supply chain that are needed to make everything from peanut butter factory equipment, to giant concrete bases for windmills. Without them, it would make more sense to build elsewhere…
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By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst If the Biden Administration is going to restrict polluting industries at home, what about those who pollute overseas, and then import the goods they make to the United States? If the US and Canada are at all serious in their latest threat to treat high polluting countries differently from…
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By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst What countries and what products helped lead to an historic trade deficit in the middle of a global pandemic. The biggest takeaway from 2020 trade: Vietnam is now China’s offshore lovechild. And Switzerland’s currency maneuvers gave it the biggest jump in its trade gap with the US, ever. Demand…
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By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst Katherine Tai reportedly gave the Business Roundtable some clues as to where Biden’s tariff policy is heading. Potential new US Trade Representative, Katherine Tai, reportedly told the Business Roundtable that lobbying for tariff removal won’t work, at least for the time being. She said companies keen to keep the…
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By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst The US says there will be no new vacancy slots filled at the World Trade Organization’s Appellate Body due to a number of “systemic” problems. Biden sticking with Trump’s policy for now. In continuing with the Trump administration’s hard tack against the World Trade Organization, the Biden administration said…
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CPA’s CEO, Michael Stumo, and Government Relations Director, Jon Toomey discuss the Office of the USTR announcement of 13 key staff appointments for the Biden-Harris Administration. See also Biden’s Trade Rep Nominee Is Well-Versed in Beijing’s Aggression
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By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst Worried about China and the US policy towards our biggest strategic rival? Then Tom Cotton’s office has the perfect weekend reading. The 84-page Beat China: Targeted Decoupling and the Economic Long War looks in the rearview at China-US policy, and lists some strategies to deal with China going forward.…
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By Kenneth Rapoza, CPA Industry Analyst US chip makers have a commanding lead when it comes to sales worldwide of the chips in our X Box controllers, laptops, and — increasingly — our cars. But mostly all of it is made in Asia. The recent chip shortage has executives from Intel, AMD and elsewhere asking…
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The new Biden administration faces a whirlwind of economic recovery challenges. The COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on the U.S. economy and millions remain unemployed. And thanks to Chairman Xi Jinping’s actions in China, along with former President Donald Trump’s use of unilateral economic leverage—including tariffs—Congress is fully aware that Beijing will not play by…
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Americans are impatiently waiting for their chance to receive a COVID-19 vaccination. It’s estimated 70 to 85 percent of the nation will need to be fully vaccinated in order for the United States to return to “normal” living conditions. So far, however, only about three percent of the U.S. population has been fully vaccinated. Clearly, there’s a lot of…
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