http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/trade/ en-us Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:33:06 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417828/posts WASHINGTON — The US International Trade Commission gave final approval Wednesday for imposition of penalty tariffs on imported Chinese steel pipes targted for unfair subsidies. The commission, an independent federal agency determining import injury to US industries, said it "has made an affirmative determination in its final-phase countervailing duty investigation concerning" the "oil country tubular goods" from China. The Commerce Department said last month it wanted to impose tariffs of between 10.36 percent and 15.78 percent, in addition to normal duties, following a probe on the imported steel pipes used to deliver oil and gas in the petroleum industry. The... Google News (AFP) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417828/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:33:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417373/posts Moderate Senate Democrats have begun urging the White House to give up on a cap-and-trade climate change bill in 2010, according to Politico. Senator Mary Landrieu (D-La.) is one of at least a half-dozen who do not want to take up the divisive issue in an election year after the battle over health care legislation has split voters. Sustainable Business http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417373/posts#comment Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:48:55 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417189/posts Is Obama's Manufacturing Fix too Late?by Alan Tonelson Opinion/Analysis Will the Obama administration's new blueprint for "Revitalizing American Manufacturing" be a case of "better late than never" ... or "too little, too late"? Two weeks after the document's release, the "late" part is the only certain characteristic. After all, the ongoing economic crisis stems ultimately from chronic U.S. underproduction. Therefore, truly healthy growth (as opposed to the artificial, unsustainable, government-generated variety) won't return until the nation greatly boosts genuine wealth creation. Manufacturing dominates the segment of the economy that creates real wealth (as opposed to the paper variety to which... The Washington Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2417189/posts#comment Tue, 29 Dec 2009 21:32:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415440/posts ... [T]his is neither a housing crisis nor a Wall Street banking crisis. This is a monetary crisis, rooted in the lending of money created out of thin air. This is what leads to economic booms and busts. The current crisis goes back to the Asian Contagion of 1997 and the meltdown of the Long Term Capital Management hedge fund in 1998. In response to each of these situations, the Federal Reserve cut interest rates and rapidly expanded the money supply. This excess liquidity helped push stocks, especially tech issues, to unsustainably high levels. The excess money created by the... Barron's http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2415440/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 20:49:45 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2415147/posts On the topic of international trade, the views of economists tend to differ from those of the general public. There are three principle differences. First, many noneconomists believe that it is more advantageous to trade with other members of one’s nation or ethnic group than with outsiders. Economists see all forms of trade as equally advantageous. Second, many noneconomists believe that exports are better than imports for the economy. Economists believe that all trade is good for the economy. Third, many noneconomists believe that a country’s balance of trade is governed by the “competitiveness” of its wage rates, tariffs, and... Library of Economics and Liberty http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2415147/posts#comment Sat, 26 Dec 2009 01:16:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414832/posts With the Christmas season and its promise of "Peace on earth, goodwill toward men" upon us, and protectionist sentiment stirring in Washington, it is appropriate to revisit the question of whether free trade promotes world peace. Advocates of free trade have long argued that its benefits are not merely economic. Free trade also encourages people and nations to live in peace with one another. Free trade raises the cost of war by making nations more economically interdependent. Free trade makes it more profitable for people of one nation to produce goods and services for people of another nation than to... CATO http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2414832/posts#comment Fri, 25 Dec 2009 05:01:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413393/posts Anyone still think China "Most Favored Nation" decision was right? Also, read Bill Clinton's statement in defense of it in 1993. Does anyone think Clinton and the Congressman who supported it were right? From Yahoo:LINFEN, China (AFP) – Christians in north China are facing a Christmas of fear after 10 local religious leaders were jailed in recent weeks and their new church shut down amid a crackdown on unauthorised worship.Five of the church leaders were given prison terms of up to seven-years by a Linfen court, while the others were sentenced without trial to labour camps for two years, their... AFP via Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2413393/posts#comment Wed, 23 Dec 2009 00:16:31 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412337/posts TRUNG SON, Vietnam — It seemed as if this village in northern Vietnam had struck gold when a Chinese and a Japanese company arrived to jointly build a coal-fired power plant. Thousands of jobs would start flowing in, or so the residents hoped. Four years later, the Haiphong Thermal Power Plant is nearing completion. But only a few hundred Vietnamese ever got jobs. Most of the workers were Chinese, about 1,500 at the peak. Hundreds of them are still here, toiling by day on the dusty construction site and cloistered at night in dingy dormitories. “The Chinese workers overwhelm the... The New York Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2412337/posts#comment Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:52:22 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411539/posts Lawmakers and U.S. automakers are peeved with Japan, which has launched a cash-for-clunkers program that doesn’t accept American-made cars. Under Japan’s program, consumers who trade in a car at least 13 years old can get a tax cut of up to $2,800 toward the purchase of a new car. But the program excludes imported vehicles from companies that have low sales in Japan. That covers General Motors, Ford and Chrysler, according to the American Automotive Policy Council, which has pressed the Obama administration for action. U.S. producers are particularly irked since Japanese companies did well under the cash-for-clunkers program Congress... The Hill http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2411539/posts#comment Sun, 20 Dec 2009 05:57:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2408527/posts The U.S. House of Representatives approved legislation on Tuesday to impose sanctions on foreign companies that help supply gasoline to Iran, a move lawmakers hope will deter Tehran from pursuing its nuclear program. The bill authorizes President Barack Obama to levy sanctions on energy companies that directly provide gasoline to Iran along with the firms that provide insurance and tankers to facilitate the fuel shipments. The Senate is likely to approve a similar bill, but it is uncertain how soon it will vote. HaAretz http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2408527/posts#comment Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:46:57 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406717/posts Trade Data Points To L-Shaped Outlook by: Wildebeest December 13, 2009 At first glance the contraction in the trade deficit for October looks positive. I'm generally wary of seasonally adjusted data -- not because seasonal effects don't exist but because I prefer to see the raw data and the algorithm used to do the smoothing. Non seasonally adjusted data for the trade in goods is available here. A seasonal plot of the trade deficit, derived from 22 years of data, is shown in the next chart. From that chart we see that October is typically a larger deficit month. That... Seeking Alpha http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406717/posts#comment Sun, 13 Dec 2009 19:52:41 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406659/posts New claims for unemployment benefits rose more than analysts expected last week, while an unexpected narrowing in the trade gap in October provided some indication that the U.S. economy is steadily growing. First-time claims for jobless benefits rose 17,000 last week, reaching 474,000 in total. This came after the number had declined for five weeks in a row, according to the Labor Department. The upward spike in claims is being blamed on seasonal layoffs in construction and similar industries and on the number of applications that had been held back from processing during the week of Thanksgiving. Analysts who had... New American http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2406659/posts#comment Sun, 13 Dec 2009 18:06:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405294/posts China, the world's largest maker and consumer of steel products, fired back Thursday at the United States for its anti-dumping measures against Chinese steel exports, launching its own punitive taxes on steel from US as well as Russia. The Ministry of Commerce said Thursday on its website that US and Russian steelmakers must pay anti-dumping duties as high as 25 percent beginning today. The US steel industry must also tack on a 12 percent tax when it exports its products to China. The announcement comes after a series of damaging measures against Chinese steel exports launched by the US and... China Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405294/posts#comment Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:01:59 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405116/posts Nobody can see the future but I’ll take my best stab at it -- here’s hoping I’m not just sticking my foot in my mouth. Well, it wouldn’t be the first time. The following predictions should hopefully be very controversial -- just like many of the predictions in my book Discover the Upside of Down. All of my contrarian predictions are based on how I see things setting up the weekly charts in stocks, oil, gold, currencies, commodities, foreign markets, and bonds. I’ll also throw in some specific possible catalysts that could ignite these very powerful setups as they appear... Minyanville http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2405116/posts#comment Fri, 11 Dec 2009 03:11:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404821/posts The Powers of Congress, Article I section viii from the Confederate States Constitution includes a strong statement against protectionism: "nor shall any duties or taxes on importations from foreign nations be laid to promote or foster any branch of industry" I think it's interesting to compare this with McCain's S.Amdt.279 to ARRA, "To prohibit the applicability of Buy American requirements in the Act to the utilization of funds provided by the Act." McCain's amendment would essentially gut the [protectionist] Buy American provision, so his amendment is in line with the Confederate States Constitution. I wondered if the votes on the... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2404821/posts#comment Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:17:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401598/posts Talk Is Cheap, Mr. President.... Youpolls http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2401598/posts#comment Sun, 6 Dec 2009 18:26:50 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2400075/posts Australian Senate Reaction to Climatgate Could Impact Cap & Trade in U.S. The news that the world's leading climate science institutions had been collaborating internationally for many years in a systematic and ruthless scientific and financial fraud by which they altered, suppressed, reprocessed, concealed, and conspired to destroy the data on which the world's temperature records are based has come as a wake up call to politicians previously slumbering. TheCypressTimes.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-bloggers/2400075/posts#comment Fri, 4 Dec 2009 12:30:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397450/posts The world has changed; but China has not. China has responded to the world financial crisis with what seems to be great success. But this is an illusion. China’s solution – a surge in spending on investment – will create greater excess capacity. China’s high-savings, high-investment economy is costly for its people and destabilising for the world. The time for a radical reform is long past. In a disturbing new report, the European Chamber of Commerce in China lays out the challenge in six sectors: aluminium, where the capacity utilisation rate is forecast to be 67 per cent in 2009;... The Financial Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2397450/posts#comment Tue, 1 Dec 2009 07:40:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396252/posts November 29, 2009 ECONOMIC VIEW Dangers of an Overheated China By TYLER COWEN PRESIDENT OBAMA’S recent trip to China reflects a symbiotic relationship at the heart of the global economy: China uses American spending power to enlarge its private sector, while America uses Chinese lending power to expand its public sector. Yet this arrangement may unravel in a dangerous way, and if it does, the most likely culprit will be Chinese economic overcapacity. Several hundred million Chinese peasants have moved from the countryside to the cities over the last 30 years, in one of the largest, most rapid migrations in... NYT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2396252/posts#comment Sun, 29 Nov 2009 13:18:10 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2393940/posts Cap and Trade: A License Required for your HomeFrank M. Carrio, CMI ESOP Committee Member 11/3/09, 12:29 AM We encourage you to read the provisions of the Cap and Trade Bill that has passed the House of Representatives and being considered by the Senate. We are ready to join the next march on Washington! This Congress and whoever on their staffs that write this junk are truly out to destroy the middle class of the USA.... A License Required for your house Thinking about selling your house - A look at H.R. 2454 (Cap and trade bill) This is unbelievable!... Nachi http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2393940/posts#comment Wed, 25 Nov 2009 02:06:11 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2391698/posts Facing rising unemployment and slipping poll numbers, Obama assured the public that creating new jobs... Youpolls http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2391698/posts#comment Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:39:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2389008/posts A new Gallup poll finds that 51 percent of Americans see the weak economy or high unemployment as their biggest concerns. Barely 3 percent mention the environment. And Democrats have been unable to sell cap-and-trade as a job creator. At worst, the public sees it as a jobs killer or a costly energy tax. That charge has particular weight in Reid’s home state, Nevada, a high energy-use state. (All those air conditioners!) So Reid doesn’t want to have to vote for it, which he would be compelled to do as majority leader. And neither do moderates like MaryLandrieu, Blanche Lincoln,... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2389008/posts#comment Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:16:07 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2385876/posts Obama to Warn Asia Against Relying on U.S. Consumers By JONATHAN WEISMAN and YUKA HAYASHI [President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama at a press conference in Tokyo on Friday.] AFP/Getty Images President Barack Obama and Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama hold a press conference at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo on Friday. TOKYO -- President Barack Obama has come halfway around the world to personally deliver the message to East Asia that the global economy can no longer count on the U.S. consumer to keep it afloat. In what White House aides call a "major... WSJ http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2385876/posts#comment Fri, 13 Nov 2009 22:03:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2385534/posts The Business Insider http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2385534/posts#comment Fri, 13 Nov 2009 14:48:46 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2383603/posts All the talk in Washington is surrounding a government health insurance plan, but there’s a little discussed insurance plan in the Boxer-Kerry cap and trade bill that’s worth some attention. The Senate version of the cap and trade bill includes a section that grants the President the authority to “direct relevant federal agencies” to impose additional greenhouse gas regulations. Senators David Vitter (R-LA) and John Barrasso (R-WY) have been working assiduously to uncover the true costs of cap and trade legislation. Greenhouse gas concentrations are measured in parts per million (ppm). Many global warming alarmists believe that upper limit on... The Heritage Foundation http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2383603/posts#comment Wed, 11 Nov 2009 04:44:14 GMT