Tariffs But The Trade War "Lost Many Years Ago"; Wang Yi And Wei Fenghe Go To Moscow; Anbang Bailout ; Social Credit; Vatican Deal Not Imminent; Caltech "Rival"
The trade guns of April are in position.
The US Trade Representative released the list of proposed tariffs under Section 301 and China responded with their list almost immediately.
The tariffs will not come into effect for at least a couple of months, leaving plenty of time for negotiation, so there is a chance lobbying and concessions will water them down significantly. However, even if there is some sort of “settlement” over this specific trade spat the structural forces driving the two countries towards a much more difficult future will remain unchanged.
Trump has said consistently for decades that China is ripping America off. Now he is surrounded by advisors who agree and, as the New York Times reported today "on foreign policy, President Trump reverts to candidate Trump". Trump, like Peter Navarro and others around him, deeply believes China has been waging a unilateral trade war against the US for many years. The President made that point in two tweets this morning: