So much misleading prose circulates these days:
“Manufacturing came back quickly after the recession as it has done in prior recessions, but then flattened out and declined during Obama’s second term.”
Category Archives: Trade Policy
Victory at Sea: Soybeans heading to China (from Brazil)
Reuters: After trade talks in U.S., China ramps up Brazilian soy purchases:
Nearest month futures are about a dollar lower (at $9.34/bushel) than the nearest month futures on the day when Trump announced Section 301 action against China.
Is World Trade Volume a Leading Indicator?
The slowdown could be coming from tariffs, or from decelerating economic growth. You decide…
In Bizarro World
Bryan Riley at NTU brings my attention to this press release:
The Coalition for a Prosperous America (CPA) has won the prestigious Edmund A. Mennis Award from the National Association for Business Economics (NABE) for a study showing that a permanent tariff on China would benefit the US economy. The award from the nation’s leading association of business economists confirms a growing acceptance of pro-US trade policies needed to address the nation’s economic challenges.
Cooperation with “Red China”
Reader Ed Hanson remarks:
Red China has been protectionist since its beginning. [A]nd certainly has since it joined the worldwide trade in the 80’s or so. Did protectionism make it weaker?
In light of Mr. Trump’s remarks today:
“China should start an investigation into the Bidens, because what happened in China is just about as bad as what happened with Ukraine.”
What do people like Ed Hanson (I’m guessing old, and still worrying about Commies, but thinking Russians are ok) think Mr. Trump should bargain away in terms of trade sanctions on “Red China” in order to get that investigation?
Soybeans: Victory Is Around the Corner
On July 9, 2018, about 14 months ago, reader CoRev wrote:
Those of us arguing against the constant anti-tariff, anti-Trump dialogs have noted this will probably be a price blip lasting until US/Chinese negotiations end. We are on record saying the prices will be back approaching last year’s harvest season prices.
Hah, hah, hah, hah! Time to look at prices relative to March 23, 2018, when Trump announced imposing Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods…
“The Economic Consequences of Trump’s War on Multilateralism”
That’s the title of my October 18th Global Hot Spots talk, sponsored by the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association (Fluno Center, 1:30-2:30).
“The Economic Effects of Trade Policy Uncertainty”
That’s the title of a new paper by Dario Caldara, Matteo Iacoviello, Patrick Molligo, Andrea Prestipino, and Andrea Raffo:
Winning! August Soybean Edition
From Bloomberg today:
As confusion about the possibility of a trade deal between Washington and Beijing reigns, Chinese soybean buyers are taking no chances and are turning to U.S. rivals in South America to secure supplies for next year.
Graph of Brazil premium speaks volumes:
So despite Trump’s assertion the Chinese “want deal”, what some people characterize as a price “blip” continues.
Market Assessment of Prospects for Resolution of the US-China Trade Dispute by September 2020
Going from August 22rd to 23rd, front month futures dropped 12-6; the August 2020 futures price (which are an unbiased predictor of one year ahead spot prices) was down 8-4. Hence, farmers should prepare for a long, tough, period of self-inflicted (by the administration) damage.