Car parts could be China’s trade sledgehammer 10 Oct 2018 Beijing is running out of U.S. imports to tax but it has other ways to make things ugly. American carmakers depend on an uninterrupted flow of imported parts, and China is the No. 2 supplier. Any attempt to disrupt component shipments could throttle the likes of Ford and GM.
Anti-OPEC bill may squeeze U.S. oil industry 10 Oct 2018 The disappearance of a Saudi journalist is helping to breathe life into a bipartisan effort to subject the cartel to U.S. antitrust law. But it may prove more useful as a threat than reality. America’s energy producers benefit from OPEC’s price-fixing, too.
U.S.-China trade war morphs into loyalty test 4 Oct 2018 Vice President Mike Pence wants Google to halt a search-app project in China. He also said Beijing tried to get an American company to denounce U.S. policies in exchange for a license. With tariffs already imposed on most products, warped patriotism provides a new battleground.
U.S. fritters oil stockpile at worst time 1 Oct 2018 While President Trump chides OPEC, his Iran sanctions are pushing up prices. Meanwhile the government is selling down its stockpile to plug a budget hole, not calm the market. With shale producers constrained, the White House should be more strategic with its crude reserve.
Donald Trump sets WTO up for failure 27 Sep 2018 The system for resolving commerce disputes may grind to a halt after the United States blocked the reappointment of an appeal judge at the global trade body. The president’s disdain for the organisation is no secret, but the move undermines its value to other countries, too.
Congress is too close to crying wolf on trade 25 Sep 2018 America and Canada aren’t near a NAFTA deal and time is short. U.S. lawmakers have said they won’t accept the U.S.-Mexico only pact favored by Trump, but some have criticized Ottawa. If they back down, there’s little hope for any meaningful brake on steel tariffs and the like.
Delaying NAFTA deal is actually a win-win-win 31 Aug 2018 Canada and the United States will keep talking despite missing a deadline to resolve trade talks. Negotiators will need to move quickly to avoid the risk of fresh demands from the next Mexican government. But a NAFTA that all sides can sell is more important.
NAFTA survival rests on Ottawa showmanship 29 Aug 2018 Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland is talking up how Mexico’s U.S. “concessions” help Canada. Now she needs a deal, not least on the country’s punitive dairy tariffs, that keeps both the U.S. president and her anti-Trump fellow citizens happy. That’ll require some smooth talking.
UK-Africa trade is tiny plaster for Brexit wounds 28 Aug 2018 Prime Minister Theresa May hopes deeper ties with the continent will help cushion the blow of leaving the EU. But UK trade with sub-Saharan Africa is less than 3 pct of what it exchanges with Europe. With Nigeria and South Africa in the doldrums, prospects for growth look slim.
Viewsroom: Turkey’s financial crisis may spread 16 Aug 2018 The feud between President Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump over steel tariffs threatens to turn other emerging markets cold. Breakingviews columnists discuss the global impact of Turkey’s currency meltdown. Plus: A bad bank in China gets whacked by political risk.
It’s time to take away Trump’s tariff toys 13 Aug 2018 Using steel duties to punish Turkey over a detained U.S. pastor is an abuse of the president's powers. While national security is a legitimate reason to restrict trade, doing so on a whim hurts America. Congress can be more muscular even if it's not yet prepared to rein Trump in.
Trump and Juncker revive Obama-era trade goals 25 Jul 2018 The EU will buy more American soybeans and LNG while U.S. steel tariffs may be resolved. The two also want to cut barriers in services and harmonize rules. Such issues featured with the last White House. Revisiting them in a new guise offers hope but auto levies may still loom.
WTO pullout is self-fulfilling prophecy for Trump 3 Jul 2018 About 70 pct of cases filed this year at the world body target new U.S. tariffs. The White House also isn’t strongly pursuing disputes. Tilting America’s winning record to losses would bolster WTO rancor. Congress can stop a withdrawal but anti-trade rhetoric still resonates.
Gary Cohn only delayed inevitable trade war 14 Jun 2018 The Goldman Sachs banker who went to the White House says U.S. trade spats could wipe out the benefits of tax cuts he championed. President Trump may yet escalate his campaign against China. Cohn was a helpful buffer, but Trump’s anti-globalist instincts are now in full control.
Hadas: This should be an anti-dollar moment 13 Jun 2018 Discontent with the world’s dominant currency is not new, but the Trump effect is something new. A trade circuit free from the U.S. president’s idiosyncratic America-first policies is urgently needed. The euro and renminbi can provide a base, but the politics are unpromising.
G7 risks becoming G-zero without consensus 7 Jun 2018 President Donald Trump is the sore thumb among leaders meeting in Canada on Friday. Last year’s G7 pledges were already watered down, and he hadn’t then left the global climate accord or started erecting trade barriers. The forum loses relevance if it lacks U.S. economic backing.
The Exchange: A Down Under take on Trump 6 Jun 2018 Former Australia Prime Minister Kevin Rudd gives the U.S. president some credit for his dealings with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un. But he explains that Donald Trump’s protectionism has enraged China’s leaders and may play into the hands of the country’s own nationalists.
U.S.-China trade gap is best filled with software 23 May 2018 Beijing plans to shrink the $375 bln surplus by buying commodities like oil and soybeans. Better to import intellectual property, and pay for the millions of unlicensed copies of Microsoft and Adobe products running in China. Local firms could use the productivity upgrade.
The Exchange: The failure and future of globalism 18 May 2018 Not everyone has been a winner from globalization. Eurasia Group founder Ian Bremmer talked to Amanda Gomez about his book “Us vs. Them: The Failure of Globalism” and discussed what political and business leaders can do to make the world economic system work for all.
Saudi gets new license to be selfish over oil 9 May 2018 Since 2016 the kingdom has championed output cuts that have drained a supply glut and helped spur prices. Now that the U.S. President has amped up sanctions on Iran, Saudi can fill any gap left by lower Iranian exports. What it loses on price, it gains in volume and U.S. gratitude.