Escalating trade war with China won’t fix the need for reform: CEI analysis

On Monday, China vowed to retaliate against nations that corporate with President Trump’s tariffs against Beijing, putting potential trade deals between the US and other nations in jeopardy. CEI senior economist Ryan Young says an escalating trade war would do far more harm than good.

“Tariffs aren’t the only way other countries are retaliating in President Trump’s trade war. Tariffs in the China-Trump spat are now high enough to end most US-China trade, if they appear likely to stay in place for the long term. That does not mean China has no more volleys to fire.

“The administration wants to make trade deals with China’s neighbors who send clothes, shoes, electronics, toys, and other goods to the US. China has announced that it will try to block those deals. Trump has already tariffed those countries, hitting American consumers once. If China blocks trade potential deals, the American economy could take a second blow.

“None of this would have happened if Trump had not escalated tariffs in the first place.

“China is a problematic actor on trade, human rights, and other issues. The question is what to do about it. We’ve known since Trump’s first term that tariffs are not the answer. Four rounds of back-and-forth tariffs did not convince Beijing to make a single reform.

“The massive tariff escalation in the last three months has also failed to convince Beijing to reform. Now the US is staring at a self-imposed recession and has damaged needed alliances against potential security threats like China.”