Beijing didn’t take Donald Trump’s tariffs lying down.
No, instead Xi Jinping slapped a 34% duty on all imports from the US, effective next week, a tit-for-tat response to the incremental 34% levy Trump imposed on China this week.
That 34% figure, you’ll recall, was derived using some funny math. Not “ha, ha” funny, but rather fishy funny, where “fishy” means Trump’s USTR is goal-seeking the elimination of trade deficits, and China’s the biggest target.
So, we’re now in a place where China’s taxing US imports at a rate derived from an equation the parameters of which were set to eliminate the two countries’ bilateral trade imbalance. In other words, we’re in “stupid” territory already, and there’s scope for things to get considerably sillier given that China’s actually being tariffed by Trump at 54% (the extra 34% came atop a 20% levy he imposed earlier this year).
On Friday, China also introduced new export controls on rare earths citing “national security” and, amusingly, Beijing’s “international obligations regarding non-proliferation.”
Oh, and Xi’s also concerned about the presence of “banned drugs,” specifically furazolidone, in chicken produced by Delaware-based Mountaire Farms and also birds from Georgia’s Coastal Processing. The barred substance has been detected in those two companies’ poultry “many times,” Beijing chided, in what, if the CCP had a sense of humor, would count as wry wit.
Obviously, the Party can’t sit idly by while the US feeds Chinese doped-up chicken, so in order to “safeguard consumers’ health,” Beijing’s halting all imports from those two companies, according to a notice from the customs administration.
Regrettably, the Party also had to suspend sorghum imports from C&D (USA) Inc. due to the presence of mold. Not only that, Chinese customs officials found too much aflatoxin in the shipments, and you know what that means. (I don’t either, but I assume it’s related to mold, and probably poses some manner of health risks.)
It didn’t stop there. Beijing went on to suspend imports from three US companies which “deal with bone meal,” reasoning that the Party has to “ensure the safety of the country’s livestock industry.”
These measures, a Chinese customs official said Friday, are “necessary, scientific and reasonable.” They’re also “in compliance with relevant laws and regulations, and in line with international practices,” which is to say they’re all of the things Trump’s tariffs aren’t.
If you’re wondering whether Trump’s deterred, or otherwise inclined to deescalate, the answer’s… well, you know what? I’ll just let him tell you:
MY POLICIES WILL NEVER CHANGE. THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO GET RICH, RICHER THAN EVER BEFORE!!!
Steer clear everybody, stable genius at work.
Today’s job report is critical, which gives Trump Inc. the strength to carry forward its policy and its idea. On the other side, employment situations of its only (emphasis here) rivary isn’t rosy, to put it politely.
No. Sorry. Today’s US jobs report is meaningless. Self-evidently. Anything that happened before Wednesday is now ancient history, and the labor market’s a lagging indicator anyway.
Plus, Xi can just tell Chinese to suck it up and they can’t say anything. Trump’s an aspiring authoritarian, but he can’t stop people from making fun of him. And he’s going to be heckled from the peanut gallery mercilessly all day, every day, until the bleeding stops. Eventually, it’ll cause him so much psychological distress that he’ll have to figure a way to turn it around.
Turn it around? What will war with Iran do, distract? Crazy even thinking it.
War with China probably makes more sense at this point. His fragile ego will eventually demand American lives to defend it.
A few years ago, you mentioned that Americans don’t wake up until the pain becomes undeniable. This is that moment. The external threat. Let’s see in four years.
If he doesn’t change his policies by this weekend something will break. This violent of a move is not sustainable.
High Yield OAS jumped yesterday. For the past couple months, the credit market has been tame and spreads have been tight, but it is starting to wake up.
The heads at CNBC read that tweet differently. They saw it as a response to something Macron said yesterday about how it might be wise to hold back on investing in the US until the tariff situation is better clarified.
It was amusing to watch the regulars in the run up and post number commentary. Joe Kernan was in an absolutely foul mood, buttressed by the always calm and measured Rick Santelli. They seemed to take the tariff-sparked sell off as a personal affront. Dr. Kernan kept hounding a guest from JP Morgan to answer “Do you recommend selling the Nasdaq today?” She finally answered that they recommend that you look elsewhere and underweight tech stocks now.
Who says there is no great TV anymore?
None of that stuff’s real. It’s just entertainment and all of those people are actors. I mean, not 100% literally, but damn near. CNBC’s only marginally more real than Fox’s stage production. Those people rant and rave and the audience gets fired up and cheers for their favorite characters and then when the cameras turn off, those guys and gals go eat a tuna sandwich and talk about — you know — labradoodles or something.
Santelli – always calm & measured? He of the (in-} famous rant credited with starting the TeaParty??
I’m sure derek was being sarcastic.
The clown in chief will run this county into the ground just like he ran his inherited business empire into the ground. If it weren’t for his accidental foray into television personality he would have been just another bankrupt loser.
Unlike his first term, he is now surrounded by ass lickers of the first order. We are snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
Well said. But still so surreal. Is it possible for a federal judge to declare an injunction/moratorium on this absurd trade policy ??
We’re on the Pequod with Captain Ahab!
Captain Queeg!
In the GFC, there were serious people in office. In the GTC . . .
Hello, Congress….. Are you there?
Get rich? I guess everyone should start shorting everything. That’s the only way to make that happen in the current environment, right?
Well, imagine how many millions (tens or maybe hundreds of) Trump received in crypto since the election. From tech, from Wall Street, foreign agencies, foreign businesses, etc. not to mention Musk. I’m sure that Trump feels richer than ever. He just might be.