Tag: Trump tariffs

How Trump’s tariffs on Mexico are taking jobs from U.S. workers

The following article by Erica Werner and Kevin Sieff was posted on the Washington Post website July 18, 2018:

Jessica Lopez packages wire coil nails at the Mid Continent Nail Corp. in Poplar Bluff, Mo. Credit: Brad Vest, The Washington Post

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. — When a Mexican company bought Mid Continent Nail Corp. in 2012, workers at the factory here feared it was the beginning of the end. Their jobs, they suspected, would be given to lower-paid workers in Mexico, more casualties of the hollowing out of U.S. manufacturing driven in part by an embrace of global trade.

Instead, Mid Continent’s factory has doubled in size since Deacero’s purchase. The company, facing fewer restrictions on steel exports after the North American Free Trade Agreement, shipped steel into Missouri, willing to pay skilled workers more to take advantage of cheaper energy costs in the United States and a location that allowed swift delivery to U.S. customers.

But President Trump has put 25 percent tariffs on steel imports, bumping production costs and prompting Deacero to reconsider this arrangement. With Mid Continent charging more for nails, orders are down 70 percent from this time a year ago despite a booming construction industry. Company officials say that without relief, the Missouri plant could be out of business by Labor Day — or that remaining production could move to Mexico or another country.

View the complete post on the Washington Post website here.

As tariffs near, Trump’s business empire retains ties to China

The following article by Jonathan O’Connell and David A. Fahrenthold was posted on the Washington Post website July 5, 2018:

On July 6, United States tariffs on $34 billion in Chinese imports took effect, firing the first shots in a trade war between the world’s biggest economies. (Reuters)

As the Trump administration initiates a possible trade war with China, the president’s businesses continue to benefit from partnerships involving the Chinese government, via state-backed companies and investors.

Chinese government-backed firms are slated to work on parts of two large developments — in Dubai and Indonesia — that will include Trump-branded properties.

The Trumps are the landlord to one of China’s top state-owned banks, which has occupied the 20th floor of Trump Tower in Manhattan since 2008. The bank’s lease is worth close to $2 million annually, according to industry estimates and a bank filing.

View the full article on the Washington Post website here.

U.S. levies tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese imports

The following article by David J. Lynch, Danielle Paquette and Emily Rauhala was posted on the Washington Post website July 6, 2018:

A Chinese official warned July 5 the United States is “opening fire” on the world with its tariff threats. He added China would respond to any U.S. measures. (Reuters)

The United States has levied tariffs on $34 billion worth of Chinese goods, a long-threatened move that is expected to prompt Beijing to retaliate against American products and plunge the two countries into a costly and increasingly unpredictable trade war.

U.S. customs officers started imposing duties on $34 billion in Chinese goods at 12:01 a.m. Friday. Moments after the deadline, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce issued a statement calling the U.S. move “typical trade bullying.”

“In order to defend the core interests of the country and the interests of the people, we are forced to retaliate,” the statement said.

View the full article on the Washington Post website here.

G.M. Says New Wave of Trump Tariffs Could Force U.S. Job Cuts

The following article by Tiffany Hsu was posted on the Washington Post website June 29,2018:

A GMC Sierra truck on display in Detroit in March, 2018. Credit: Jeff Kowalsky, Bloomberg

General Motors warned Friday that if President Trump pushed ahead with another wave of tariffs, the move could backfire, leading to “less investment, fewer jobs and lower wages” for its employees.

The automaker said that the president’s threat to impose tariffs on imports of cars and car parts — along with an earlier spate of penalties — could drive vehicle prices up by thousands of dollars. The “hardest hit” cars, General Motors said in comments submitted to the Commerce Department, are likely to be the ones bought by consumers who can least afford an increase. Demand would suffer and production would slow, all of which “could lead to a smaller G.M.”

The president has promoted tariffs as a way to protect American businesses and workers, aiming at dozens of nations with metal tariffs, as well as bringing broader levies against Chinese goods. But companies, which rely on other markets for sales, production and materials, have been increasingly vocal about the potential damage from his policies.

Nail manufacturing exec who voted for Trump blames him for layoffs, asks Democrat for help

The following article by Emily Birnbaum was posted on the Hill website June 23, 2018:

An executive for the largest U.S. nail producer who voted for President Trump said he is so dismayed by the president’s trade policies that he is lobbying a Democratic senator for help.

George Skarich, vice president of sales for Missouri-based Mid Continent Nail Corporation, told The New York Times that his nail company could soon go out of business. Continue reading “Nail manufacturing exec who voted for Trump blames him for layoffs, asks Democrat for help”

With tariffs, Trump starts unraveling a quarter-century of U.S.-China economic ties

The following article by David J. Lynch and Emily Rauhala was posted on the Washington Post website June 15, 2018:

President Trump imposed tariffs Friday on $50 billion in ­Chinese products, signaling his willingness to unwind nearly a ­quarter-century of growing commercial links between the world’s two largest economies unless Beijing agrees to transform the way it conducts business.

The decision marked the president’s boldest step so far to implement his “America First” strategy, which he promises will shrink the $811 billion merchandise trade deficit and return lost manufacturing jobs to the United States. Continue reading “With tariffs, Trump starts unraveling a quarter-century of U.S.-China economic ties”

Corker unveils bill to check Trump’s tariff authority, rebuffing a personal request from the president

The following article by Erica Werner was posted on the Washington Post website June 6, 2018:

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) Credit: Joshua Roberts, Reuters

Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) introduced a bipartisan bill Wednesday that would give Congress new authority to check the president’s trade moves, going forward with the legislation despite a personal appeal from President Trump to back off.

Corker’s bill would require congressional approval when the president enacts tariffs under the auspices of national security, as Trump did last week in imposing levies on aluminum and steel imports from Canada, Mexico and the European Union.

The legislation, which Corker released with a total of nine Democratic and Republican co-sponsors, is the most forceful congressional response to date to Trump’s protectionist trade agenda. For the first time, at least some Republicans are uniting behind a concrete plan to force the president to change course on trade, after months of pleas and appeals achieved little.

The development comes as Trump prepares to travel to Quebec for a meeting of the Group of Seven nations, a gathering expected to include confrontations between Trump and foreign leaders — including close U.S. allies and major trading partners — over the president’s tariffs and other policies. Continue reading “Corker unveils bill to check Trump’s tariff authority, rebuffing a personal request from the president”