The trade and economy mega-thread (4 Viewers)

[superchuck500]

Is there a trade deal with China? Is it really a deal or just a pull-back to status quo ante? Is Trump advancing US interests in this well-executed trade battle plan or was this poorly conceived from the start . . . and harmful?

I think the jury's still out, but I haven't seen that the Chinese are offering much in compromise - and it's not even clear if there's going to be an agreement. But it's clear they are working on something and I'm sure Trump will sell it as the greatest trade deal ever. The proof will be in the details.

 

[coldseat]

Lutnick gives off strong Bernie Madoff vibes. Dude has a real sleazy, New York shyster feel to him with his half bald, oily, slicked back hair.

 

[bird]

Lutnick gives off strong Bernie Madoff vibes. Dude has a real sleazy, New York shyster feel to him with his half bald, oily, slicked back hair.

That’s a feature for the MAGA party.

 

[Huntn]

Posted on Mastodon:
"Five of the world’s richest people attended Trump’s inauguration. They have lost $209 billion since that day
Elon Musk’s net worth has tumbled by $148 billion alone since Trump took office."
~ Katie Hawkinson

William Lindsey :toad: (@wdlindsy@toad.social)

"Five of the world’s richest people attended Trump’s inauguration. They have lost $209 billion since that day Elon Musk’s net worth has tumbled by $148 billion alone since Trump took office." ~ Katie Hawkinson #Musk #Trump #economy #stagflation #recession #StockMarket #billionaires #tariffs...

toad.social

He’s so rich he didn’t notice, or figures he’ll be able to recover if from US taxpayers…

 

[Optimus Prime]

Lutnick went from all caps “NO RECESSION” to “the recession will be worth it” pretty damn fast, didn’t he?

They are trying this weird combination of "No recession, no inflation", "yes recession, yes inflation but it'll be worth it in the long run" and "yes recession, yes inflation but it'll be all Biden's fault"

 

[wardorican]

I'm not sure we've ever really implemented tariffs on this large of a scale and this broadly.

I think it's one thing to tariff steel and aluminum. It's another regarding semi finished or finished vehicles between the US, Canada and Mexico. And food is a whole other thing.

The idea ofa tariff is usually industry protection. I.e. make our steel mills more competitive or not have to compete with low wage low quality steels. That can work when you have the industry, the capacity, and the work force.

However, you can't do it for everything all at once. We just don't have the capital, the equipment, or people. We aren't magically making up the difference in crude oil, petroleum products, and cars.

Speaking of automotive.... the supply chain has been built up over the past 20-30 years due to NAFTA (and Trump's renegotiation of NAFTA) to allow US automates to remain competitive by investing in factories in all three countries. They rely on their Mexican and Canadian factories as part of their supply chain. They rely on being able to go back and forth across the border without tariffs. They cant just change factories, tool it up and go. They'd lose skilled workers. Not everyone would or could move. All the auto makers can do is jack up prices, which are already stupidly high. They aren't going to do major reinvestments into the US. I think short term, they pass the cost to the consumer and try to wait this out.

 

[bird]

In 2016 I remember Tony Schwartz the co author (or rather the real author) of Trump’s Art of the Deal more or less said the whole thing was made up, pure myth making

No more legit than the story about George Washington and the cherry tree

He regretted it

Which begs the question: why would any rational person do any business with Trump? If they think that they can out scam him then they are delusional.

 

[Neworleansfan]

Inflation numbers for February from the Bureau of Labor Statistics is at 2.8%. That is a significant drop from 3.0% a month ago and beats 2.9% forecasts. The concern is can anyone trust any statistics from a government agency under this administration.

 

[Optimus Prime]

President Donald Trump took to social media to whine about who negotiated a deal allowing Canada to supply energy to the U.S. — but, it turns out, he made the deal.

Amidst the trade tariffs back-and-forth with Canada and Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who suspended the province’s 25 percent electricity surcharge on three U.S. states Tuesday, Trump fumed on Truth Social: “Why would our Country allow another Country to supply us with electricity, even for a small area?”

“Who made these decisions, and why?” the president demanded.

The decision to maintain the free flow of energy across the borders was part of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and negotiated by Trump in November 2018 during his first term. It was signed into law in January 2020…….

Trump asked who signed deal to allow Canada to supply energy to the US – it was him

The decision to maintain the free flow of energy across the borders was part of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement negotiated by Trump

www.independent.co.uk

 

[Lapaz]

I'm moved my money out of the stock market. I think it's going to keep declining, unless Trump changes his mind about tariffs. Even if he does, the immigration crackdown and layoffs will put downward pressure on the economy. If the tax cuts pass, there will be a temporary bump, but if he keeps the tariffs in place, it'll be a short lived bump. This will continue at least until Republicans finally grow a spine, because Trump won't budge over Democratic protests.

 

[fooferdoggie]

President Donald Trump took to social media to whine about who negotiated a deal allowing Canada to supply energy to the U.S. — but, it turns out, he made the deal.

the master negotiator.