Trump’s China tariff gambit is failing
Trump slapped 145% tariffs on China, thinking it would hurt them more then it would hurt the US. Of course, trade is global, and so China’s exports surged in April as a result of a jump in shipments to Southeast Asia, offsetting the drop in outbound goods to the U.S.
“China’s exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations surged 20.8% in April from a year earlier, accelerating from a 11.6% growth in March. While Vietnam and Malaysia remained the main destinations for Chinese exports to the region, Indonesia and Thailand saw shipments from China grow 37% and 28% year on year, respectively.
“Meanwhile, China’s exports to the European Union rose 8.3%, while imports fell 16.5% year on year. Exports had risen by 10.3%, while imports had dropped 7.5% in March.”
Now Trump is backing down to 80% tariffs on China, hoping that it will be enough to bring them to the table so Trump can pretend he bested Xi in the tariff wars. What a loser.
China’s exports to Asia and EU offset loss of US exports
“China’s exports to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations surged 20.8% in April from a year earlier, accelerating from a 11.6% growth in March. While Vietnam and Malaysia remained the main destinations for Chinese exports to the region, Indonesia and Thailand saw shipments from China grow 37% and 28% year on year, respectively.
“Meanwhile, China’s exports to the European Union rose 8.3%, while imports fell 16.5% year on year. Exports had risen by 10.3%, while imports had dropped 7.5% in March.”
Now Trump is backing down to 80% tariffs on China, hoping that it will be enough to bring them to the table so Trump can pretend he bested Xi in the tariff wars. What a loser.
China’s exports to Asia and EU offset loss of US exports
Joel:
The supply chain route was altered away from China to the US. Instead, the route is to Vietnam, Thailand. Malaysia, etc. They in turn ship the China product to the US. Bloomberg was talking about this occurring. They probably do not label it openly or clearly. And maybe the packaging is changed too.
He thinks he knows everything. He does not and he makes the rest of us look stupid to Asians.
At the end of the day, I think the whole tariff thing is not about raising money to pay for tax cuts or to bring industry back to this country or to stop fentanyl from coming across the border. It is all about grifting by the Mad King, his family and his cronies. How much do you think the tech and automotive industries gave them for relief from tariffs? He is explicitly tying tariff relief to countries on those countries purchasing Musk’s Starlink services. While not tariff related , there are estimates that the Mad King’s family has made $ 3 billion since January 20, 2025 on bitcoin and favorable deals from foreign governments. The real reason the Mad King admires Putin is not that he is a strong dictator, but he has mastered the art of using his position to accumulate great wealth.
@Nilles,
Spot on!
I must agree with Joel (yet again). You nailed it. However, there is one little thing to the rhetoric surrounding “raising money to pay for tax cuts or to bring industry back to this country or to stop fentanyl from coming across the border.” It is pandering to maintain political power; the three P’s so to speak.