The Biden Economy

[finnbow]

Originally Posted by whell

Can't deny I like, and still do, reversing the trend of outsourcing manufacturing outside the US. I can't deny that there were some early successes with it under Trump, including getting China to agree to increase US imports. If, in your narrow view, it means that I was "enthralled" - using the most expansive definition of that word ever conceived - I guess I was.

Two years ago, President Donald Trump signed what he called a "historical trade deal" with China that committed China to purchase $200 billion of additional US exports before December 31, 2021. Today the only undisputed "historical" aspect of that agreement is its failure. One lesson is not to make deals that cannot be fulfilled when unforeseen events inevitably occur—in this case, a pandemic and a recession. Another is not to forget the complementary policies needed to give an agreement a chance to succeed.

In the end, China bought only 58 percent of the US exports it had committed to purchase under the agreement, not even enough to reach its import levels from before the trade war. Put differently, China bought none of the additional $200 billion of exports Trump's deal had promised.

https://www.piie.com/blogs/realtime-...s-trumps-trade

Donald Trump’s tariffs and the trade war his administration launched against China turned out to be far more damaging than many believed. That is the conclusion of research finding companies, consumers and the U.S. economy paid a heavy price for the Trump administration’s protectionist trade policies.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuarta...h=54fcdc0565bd

It seems Trump's efforts were about as successful as Trump University and his charitable foundation.