Barron’s (February 6)
“Of all Trump’s potential trade war targets, Mexico is by far the most vulnerable, with exports to the U.S. close to a quarter of gross domestic product. China’s figure is less than 3%.” But Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, a relative political novice, “taught a master class on how to play a weak hand.” She “deftly handled Donald Trump” while maintaining approval (at nearly 80%) at home.
Tags: Approval, China, Deftly, Exports, GDP, Mexico, Novice, Sheinbaum, Trade war, Trump, U.S., Vulnerable
Wall Street Journal (February 1)
“President Trump will fire his first tariff salvo on Saturday against those notorious American adversaries . . . Mexico and Canada. They’ll get hit with a 25% border tax, while China, a real adversary, will endure 10%.” Should the president Trump persist, this will become “the dumbest trade war in history” for he would be imposing “25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico for no good reason.”
Tags: 10%, 25%, Adversaries, Border tax, Canada, China, Dumbest, Mexico, Notorious, Reason, Tariff, Trade war, Trump
New York Times (November 27)
“The inflation risk stalking the markets eased over the summer,” but is now “front and center again as investors contend with a Trumponomics crackdown on immigration, a rising trade-war risk and a potential bonanza of tax cuts.” Trump’s “latest trade threats show how uncertain the outlook could be”. Since he vowed “to impose tariffs on Canada, China and Mexico…analysts have been gaming out the potential impact.” It could be an opening gambit of little consequence, but “economists fear that it could add bottlenecks and costs to supply chains and reignite inflation, and that it could scramble the Fed’s policy on interest rates.”
Tags: Bottlenecks, Canada, China, Costs, Crackdown, Fed, Immigration, Inflation, Interest rates, Investors, Markets, Mexico, Risk, Supply chains, Tariffs, Tax cuts, Trade war, Trumponomics, Uncertain
Wall Street Journal (August 10)
“China was bruised by its trade war with the U.S. under President Donald Trump, but ultimately bounced back.” If he is re-elected “The economic damage to China would be much steeper than in Trump’s first term because the tariffs would be higher and China’s economy is much more vulnerable.”
Tags: Bruised, China, Economic damage, Economy, Re-elected, Tariffs, Trade war, Trump, U.S., Vulnerable
Reuters (December 23)
In 2024, “the global trade war will shift from fossil fuels to metals and raw materials. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine highlighted the risk of relying on autocratic states for energy. Even if Europe’s gas crisis eases, Western manufacturers’ focus will switch to reducing China’s dominance in materials key to a cleaner economy.”
Tags: 2024, Autocratic, China, Cleaner, Dominance, Energy, Europe, Fossil fuels, Gas crisis, Global, Invasion, Materials, Metals, Raw materials, Relying, Risk, Russia, Shift, Trade war, Ukraine
The Economist (June 6)
“Until recently, conventional wisdom held that Hong Kong’s position would be assured for 20-30 years…. But the trade war, a year of street protests and China’s iron-fisted response to them raise new questions about Hong Kong’s durability.” So far, there is little evidence of capital flight, but the territory must again rise to the challenge or “its time as a global financial centre really will be up.”
Tags: Capital flight, China, Durability, Global financial centre, Hong Kong, Iron-fisted, Protests, Trade war, Wisdom
Time (February 16 edition)
Despite amassing enormous power, President Xi has struggled to manage major issues. “These include popular unrest in semiautonomous Hong Kong, a disruptive trade war with the U.S. and now an unfolding health crisis.” The coronavirus appears to be the biggest challenge. It “threatens to undermine further his mission to have China stake out the next century as America did the last.”
The Economist (February 8)
Production of masks, “sadly, is one of the few economic ventures that is still expanding in this thrice-struck city.” Hong Kong’s “GDP shrank last year for the first time in a decade, thanks to the trade war and anti-government protests. The coronavirus now poses a third threat. Some economists have slashed their growth forecasts for Hong Kong by more than for the mainland.”
Tags: Anti-government protests, Coronavirus, GDP, Growth forecasts, Hong Kong, Mainland, Masks, Threat, Trade war, Ventures
Investment Week (November 18)
The Fed’s “180-degree policy U-turn…from tightening to loosening interest rates” has “increased uncertainty about monetary policy.” Another factor exacerbating matters is “the unpredictable and escalating trade war between the US and China.” Combined, they have “resulted in a higher frequency of volatility spikes and some violent sector rotation.”
Tags: China, Fed, Interest rates, Loosening, Monetary policy, Tightening, Trade war, U-turn, U.S., Uncertainty, Unpredictable, Volatility
Business Insider (November 17)
“While you weren’t looking… the trade war with China went completely off the rails and lost its meaning.” The trade war ostensibly began to deal with the “theft of US intellectual property (IP).” This key issue has essentially been abandoned and the dispute has moved on. It now appears centered on “how many soybeans China will buy.”