as declared in That (relatively) free trade increases overall international wealth is a widely accepted economic theory — but one that has always fit uneasily over large parts of the American landscape. The real but amorphous benefits of free trade are experienced nationwide. (And, on the left, as Bernie Sanders did; in US politics, opposition to free trade is a place where right- and left-wing populism meet.) That counteracts the wealth-maximizing effect of free trade. Those are just some of the thorny questions that Trump's trade policies raise.
collected by :Donald Luther
Europe says trade fight with US will hurt economic growth
Trade tensions with the United States are hurting economic growth in Europe. The European Union has cut its forecast for economic expansion in 2018 to 2.1%, down from a prediction of 2.3% in May. Pierre Moscovici, the bloc's economy commissioner, said the downward revision "reflects the impact on confidence of trade tensions and policy uncertainty." That has sparked retaliatory action from the European Union and other major US trading partners, including Canada and Mexico. Moscovici also warned that higher energy costs — pushed up by rising oil prices — are expected to dampen growth in Europe.Sorry, China. This isn't the 'largest trade war in economic history'
according to "This is hyperbole from the Chinese," said Irwin, author of "Clashing Over Commerce: A History of U.S. Trade Policy." "During the Great Depression, world trade fell by 25 percent. Global trade is growing, the World Trade Organization says, a big contrast to the Depression era, when it shrank by a quarter in volume and 40 percent in value. (That includes Trump's tariffs on solar panels, washing machines, steel, aluminum and $34 billion worth of Chinese goods.) Trump's tariffs are mostly 25 percent and applied to under 4 percent of goods. China joins a growing list of countries to brush off Trump's trade threatsAs Trump's trade war starts, China vows retaliationWhen the world's economic giants wage a trade war, the heat is felt from Singapore to Seoul
Take Singapore and South Korea. Yet virtually everything that could go wrong is showing up in the data: fallout from Donald Trump's trade war, central bank tightening, a stronger dollar and rising oil prices. Not when you consider what's afoot in South Korea, another open, trade-reliant nation that often acts like a global weathervane. Fallout from Trump's trade war augurs poorly for Singapore's outlook – and the global economy's. Anyone who doubts the epic nature of this trade war isn't paying attention to the economic weather in Singapore and Seoul.collected by :Donald Luther