Canada, Greenland, Mexico, etc - USA Tariffs / Trade War commencing March 2025 #4

[Herat]

Financial analysts are saying retail products, especially footwear and apparel cannot be expected to be switched from overseas manufacturers to US production for a decade.

US does not have the raw materials (must be imported), they do not have the machine technology ( made overseas), do not have the skilled workers, do not have the land or plans for any plant production.

It is more realistic for Nike or clothing or such to switch to factories in Poland or south America than to bring any manufacturing back to the US.

 

[Herat]

The CEO's of major companies must be making a lot of phone calls to their Senators and Representatives.

Imaging switching all your manufacturing to Vietnam, or Cambodia, or Sri Lanka , or Indonesia to bypass China and cooperate with the current administration's issues with Chinese trade relations. Then, without any logic or advice, having all the rug pulled out from under your feet when your new manufacturing now has equal or even worse tariffs.

These kinds of companies cannot turn on a dime. They must be beyond furious about the implications for decreased profits which are going to require firing US workers and their support system.

And if you think corporations are big and bad, remember that your pension funds, 401K or IRA is likely invested in these US companies and you don't have to be active in the stock markets to be showing huge drops in the amount of money you thought you had put away for retirement.

The outcome is increasing prices, job losses, inflation, and devaluing your savings.

Stagflation is gonna be really ugly

 

[BayouBelle_LA]

Everyone is telling Trump: Blanket tariffs are a loser.

RSBM for focus

Not everyone is saying this. Here’s a press release by Democrat Congressman Jared Golden.

April 2, 2025
Press Release
WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) released the following statement today after President Donald Trump’s announcement of a series of new tariff policies during a news conference in the White House Rose Garden:

"President Trump has introduced a number of new tariff policies, and I and my team are already digging into the details. I’ll have more to say on the specifics in the next few days.

“What I can say now is I’m pleased the president is building his tariff agenda on the foundation of a universal 10 percent tariff like the one I proposed in the BUILT USA Act. This ring fence around the American economy is a good start to erasing our unsustainable trade deficits.

“I’m eager to work with the president to fix the broken ‘free trade’ system that made multinational corporations rich but ruined manufacturing communities across the country. But tariffs must be paired with policies that prioritize American families’ prosperity. We need to make sure that the new approach benefits working people — that means supporting unions, the trades and apprenticeship programs, cutting regulations that hold back production, unleashing American energy and using tariff revenue to support domestic manufacturers that create good-paying jobs for Americans.

“It’s also time to renegotiate trade deals like the USMCA to support the Americans who are ready to ramp up production and support the rebuilding of our middle class — like the sawmills, processing plants, fishermen and farmers in the communities I represent.

“Tariffs are a first step in rewriting a rigged trade system, but they cannot be the last one.”

Golden statement on President Trump’s tariffs announcements

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) released the following statement today after President Donald Trump’s announcement of a series of new tariff policies during a news conference in the White House Rose Garden:

golden.house.gov

 

[Summerliz03]

I think the average American, especially MAGA Americans are just completely uninformed and uneducated on how tariffs work. I know it’s been discussed with the polling showing that a large majority of Americans think that the importer is paying the tax on a tariff. It reminds me of this iconic scene from Ferris Buellers Day off - I picture most Americans sitting there like the kids in class when being taught how tariffs actually work

Too bad we couldn’t learn from this history lesson!

 

[otto]

Secretary of Commerce Lutnik says America is the greatest and the US growth rate will supercharge.

He says we will bring back 5 millions jobs in manufacturing and boost our economy, And then he says it will be with robotics.

ROBOTICS? So are the 5 million jobs going to be 5 million robots doing the jobs or 5 million human beings in the manufacturing plants that aren't yet budgeted, or planned, or zoned, or built. Heck, the products these manufacturing plants are ALWAYS going to be cheaper overseas. We always have huge differences in pay for jobs compared to overseas.

And let's be very clear - No one in the US Government has addressed providing healthcare, in an environment where medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, and such will be increasing in cost, if there are not full-on shortages. Hitting Ireland, Switzerland, and India for pharmaceuticals is beyond short-sighted.

Lutnik is a pompom carrying cheerleader for Trump who is likely the one that Trump will blame when it all falls apart. His days in his $25 million Washington DC mansion are numbered.

I didn't realize until recently that Trump and the USA government are not interested in developing manufacturing and building jobs in the USA. They want foreign manufacturing companies to re-locate to the USA. The USA wants to poach manufacturing companies from other countries.

What a lazy approach!

 

[otto]

RSBM for focus

Not everyone is saying this. Here’s a press release by Democrat Congressman Jared Golden.

April 2, 2025
Press Release
WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) released the following statement today after President Donald Trump’s announcement of a series of new tariff policies during a news conference in the White House Rose Garden:

"President Trump has introduced a number of new tariff policies, and I and my team are already digging into the details. I’ll have more to say on the specifics in the next few days.

“What I can say now is I’m pleased the president is building his tariff agenda on the foundation of a universal 10 percent tariff like the one I proposed in the BUILT USA Act. This ring fence around the American economy is a good start to erasing our unsustainable trade deficits.

“I’m eager to work with the president to fix the broken ‘free trade’ system that made multinational corporations rich but ruined manufacturing communities across the country. But tariffs must be paired with policies that prioritize American families’ prosperity. We need to make sure that the new approach benefits working people — that means supporting unions, the trades and apprenticeship programs, cutting regulations that hold back production, unleashing American energy and using tariff revenue to support domestic manufacturers that create good-paying jobs for Americans.

“It’s also time to renegotiate trade deals like the USMCA to support the Americans who are ready to ramp up production and support the rebuilding of our middle class — like the sawmills, processing plants, fishermen and farmers in the communities I represent.

“Tariffs are a first step in rewriting a rigged trade system, but they cannot be the last one.”

Golden statement on President Trump’s tariffs announcements

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) released the following statement today after President Donald Trump’s announcement of a series of new tariff policies during a news conference in the White House Rose Garden:

golden.house.gov

More tariffs on penguins!

Great idea. That will create good-paying jobs for people in the USA. Can't want to see results.

 

[otto]

The USA is sinking financially while other countries confirm new alliances.

"The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six others, fell 1.6 per cent to 102.03, its lowest since early October. The dollar index is down more than 5.7 per cent this year.

The euro, the largest component in the index, gained 1.5 per cent to a six-month high of $1.1021 US. ...

The Canadian dollar traded for 71.19 cents US, compared with 69.83 cents US on Wednesday. ...

The yen strengthened to a three-week high against the dollar and was last up 1.7 per cent at 146.76 per dollar, while the Swiss franc touched its strongest level in five months at 0.86555 per dollar.
...

Von der Leyen said the EU was already finalizing a first package of tariffs on up to 26 billion euros ($28.4 billion US) of U.S. goods for mid-April in response to American steel and aluminum tariffs that took effect on March 12.

"And we're now preparing for further countermeasures to protect our interests and our businesses if negotiations fail," von der Leyen said in a statement she read out in the Uzbek city of Samarkand on Thursday, ahead of an EU-Central Asia partnership summit."

https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/eu-countermeasures-us-tariffs-1.7500731

 

[Lyanna]

RSBM for focus

Not everyone is saying this. Here’s a press release by Democrat Congressman Jared Golden.

April 2, 2025
Press Release
WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) released the following statement today after President Donald Trump’s announcement of a series of new tariff policies during a news conference in the White House Rose Garden:

"President Trump has introduced a number of new tariff policies, and I and my team are already digging into the details. I’ll have more to say on the specifics in the next few days.

“What I can say now is I’m pleased the president is building his tariff agenda on the foundation of a universal 10 percent tariff like the one I proposed in the BUILT USA Act. This ring fence around the American economy is a good start to erasing our unsustainable trade deficits.

“I’m eager to work with the president to fix the broken ‘free trade’ system that made multinational corporations rich but ruined manufacturing communities across the country. But tariffs must be paired with policies that prioritize American families’ prosperity. We need to make sure that the new approach benefits working people — that means supporting unions, the trades and apprenticeship programs, cutting regulations that hold back production, unleashing American energy and using tariff revenue to support domestic manufacturers that create good-paying jobs for Americans.

“It’s also time to renegotiate trade deals like the USMCA to support the Americans who are ready to ramp up production and support the rebuilding of our middle class — like the sawmills, processing plants, fishermen and farmers in the communities I represent.

“Tariffs are a first step in rewriting a rigged trade system, but they cannot be the last one.”

Golden statement on President Trump’s tariffs announcements

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) released the following statement today after President Donald Trump’s announcement of a series of new tariff policies during a news conference in the White House Rose Garden:

golden.house.gov

Neither is he saying that tariffs are a winner.

Moo

 

[Mo Thuairim]

Danish PM tells US ‘you cannot annex another country’ on visit to Greenland​

[...]

Speaking onboard an inspection ship in front of a military helicopter, alongside Greenland’s new prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, and its outgoing prime minister, Múte B Egede, Mette Frederiksen switched from Danish to English to address the diplomatic standoff with the Trump administration.

“This is about the world order that we have built together across the Atlantic over generations,” she said. “You cannot annex another country – not even with an argument about international security.”

[...]

In contrast to last week’s Greenland visit by the US vice-president, JD Vance – which, after a diplomatic outcry, was limited to the US military base Pituffik and did not involve Greenlandic or Danish representatives – Frederiksen was greeted at the airport by Egede and went straight to the capital, Nuuk, where she met Nielsen.

[...]

Frederiksen’s visit takes place amid reports from the US that the White House is preparing an estimate of what it would cost the government to control Greenland as a territory.

According to the Washington Post, the White House budget office is assessing the cost of running Greenland and working out an estimate of how much revenue could be earned from its natural resources.

[...]

Danish PM tells US ‘you cannot annex another country’ on visit to Greenland

Mette Frederiksen, who met island’s new and outgoing PMs, says she wants to cooperate with Trump on Arctic security

www.theguardian.com

 

[otto]

Economists agree that Trump's tariffs appear to be generated by ChatGPT! It's too ridiculous to be generated by a human.

"The calculation of the tariff rates raises questions. According to the White House, it works like this: the trade deficit is divided by the total value of a country's exports to arrive at "the combined effect of all their tariffs, restrictions and other cheating." Trump claims that this has halved the result.

The calculation did not look at which levies and taxes countries in turn imposed on the United States. This was expected, because Trump had been talking about "reciprocal levies" for some time.

Despite the explanation, Rabobank economists speak of "absurd results", which seem to have been invented by ChatGPT. They point out that free-trading nation Switzerland has been imposed a 31 percent levy and protectionist Argentina only 10 percent."

Verbijstering bij economen: vijf vragen over Trumps heffingen en de gevolgen

Gisteravond kondigde Trump 'volstrekt unieke' heffingen aan voor bijna alle landen in de wereld.

nos.nl

 

[Stunned]

Secretary of Commerce Lutnik says America is the greatest and the US growth rate will supercharge.

He says we will bring back 5 millions jobs in manufacturing and boost our economy, And then he says it will be with robotics.

ROBOTICS? So are the 5 million jobs going to be 5 million robots doing the jobs or 5 million human beings in the manufacturing plants that aren't yet budgeted, or planned, or zoned, or built. Heck, the products these manufacturing plants are ALWAYS going to be cheaper overseas. We always have huge differences in pay for jobs compared to overseas.

And let's be very clear - No one in the US Government has addressed providing healthcare, in an environment where medical supplies, pharmaceuticals, and such will be increasing in cost, if there are not full-on shortages. Hitting Ireland, Switzerland, and India for pharmaceuticals is beyond short-sighted.

Lutnik is a pompom carrying cheerleader for Trump who is likely the one that Trump will blame when it all falls apart. His days in his $25 million Washington DC mansion are numbered.

And he doesn't even see it coming. IMO

 

[sds71]

Dow drops 1,680 in its biggest wipeout since 2020 as fears of fallout from tariffs shake markets and S&P 500 sinks 4.8%

https://twitter.com/x/status/1907887380607979747

 

[BayouBelle_LA]

Neither is he saying that tariffs are a winner.

Moo

He thinks it’s a great idea and a good start. imo.

Another press release from Golden from January -

Golden introduces legislation to establish universal 10 percent tariff

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) today introduced the BUILT USA Act to incentivize American manufacturing, tackle the trade deficit and create jobs by establishing a 10 percent tariff on all imports.

golden.house.gov

Golden introduces legislation to establish universal 10 percent tariff​

 

[TootsieFootsie]

"We subsidize a lot of countries and keep them going and keep them in business," Trump said

Trump is running the US, like it's a business and treating other countries like they are also businesses.
He's a ruthless businessman.

 

[Stunned]

Economists have commented that the tariffs were not determined by validated and standard methodologies, nor were they planned with numerous algorithms that could predict the effect on the US for each kind and level of tariff.

So basically, Trump and his sycophantic advisors pulled the numbers out of a roulette wheel of inappropriately simple untested and unfounded calculations.

You're kidding right? IMO!

 

[Mo Thuairim]

More tariffs on penguins!

Great idea. That will create good-paying jobs for people in the USA. Can't want to see results.

Maybe the penguins were ungrateful and didn't thank him enough. Tariffs should teach them.

Hilarious memes go viral after Trump slams huge tariffs on penguin island

The internet did not miss its chance to lambast Donald Trump for placing a 10 percent tariff on an island only inhabited by penguins

www.irishstar.com

 

[Lyanna]

He thinks it’s a great idea and a good start. imo.
Another press release from Golden.

Golden introduces legislation to establish universal 10 percent tariff

WASHINGTON — Congressman Jared Golden (ME-02) today introduced the BUILT USA Act to incentivize American manufacturing, tackle the trade deficit and create jobs by establishing a 10 percent tariff on all imports.

golden.house.gov

Golden introduces legislation to establish universal 10 percent tariff​

He didn't say it was a great idea. He said he was pleased that the president was building his tariff agenda by using his (Golden's) tariff proposal (universal 10% tariff from which this above article is about - of course he'd be pleased!)
But he went on to say that tariffs are just one step and cannot be the only step and that the tariffs had to be paired with policies so that American families can prosper, it needs to benefit working class Americans.
At the very beginning, he also said he and his team were looking into the new Trump tariff policies and the details.
He's a blue dog democrat, financial stability is important to them. He will consider the American people, their livelihoods, savings, pensions, cost of living etc - Trump doesn’t give a toss, you know about you, your family, how this will impact you - Trump cares about himself and his rich friends. I think you all deserve so much more from your president
Maybe Golden could be the next presidential candidate

Moo
Ebm

 

[Lyanna]

Economists agree that Trump's tariffs appear to be generated by ChatGPT! It's too ridiculous to be generated by a human.

"The calculation of the tariff rates raises questions. According to the White House, it works like this: the trade deficit is divided by the total value of a country's exports to arrive at "the combined effect of all their tariffs, restrictions and other cheating." Trump claims that this has halved the result.

The calculation did not look at which levies and taxes countries in turn imposed on the United States. This was expected, because Trump had been talking about "reciprocal levies" for some time.

Despite the explanation, Rabobank economists speak of "absurd results", which seem to have been invented by ChatGPT. They point out that free-trading nation Switzerland has been imposed a 31 percent levy and protectionist Argentina only 10 percent."

Verbijstering bij economen: vijf vragen over Trumps heffingen en de gevolgen

Gisteravond kondigde Trump 'volstrekt unieke' heffingen aan voor bijna alle landen in de wereld.

nos.nl

Found the last section interesting, Trump forgetting about his new tariffs affecting the cost of materials and components that will be needed for manufacturing and therefore imported because of the new levies (can't remember word for word what he said)

Moo
Ebm

 

[Herat]

Try taking a shopping trip through your shower and bathroom. This is what I found

Contact lenses - Made in Ireland (That's a huge surprise)
Contact lens solution: Distributed in US made of imported ingredients ( most likely from India)
Facial wipes from Costco: Made in Korea

Dental Floss - Made in Canada
Shampoo - Made in US of imported ingredients
Conditioner - Made in US of Canadian ingredients
Body wash - Made in US or Canada of Canadian ingredients
Another shampoo - Made in Germany
Another body wash - Made in France
Another cleanser - Distributed in US of imported ingredients

Vitamins - "Distributed in US" No mention of where manufactured
Nyquil - "Distributed in US" No mention of where manufactured.
Deodorant: "Distributed in US" No mention of where manufactured.

I'm very curious about where my medications were made. They are all generics from Costco, so it will take some digging to figure it out.

My Land's End pants are made in Bangladesh
My Land's End fleece top is made in Cambodia
My Patagonia Nano puff hoody is made in Vietnam
My Sketcher shoes are "Hecho in Vietnam"

My Toyota model is made only in Japan.
My vehicle tires from Les Schwab are either made in China or Mexico

My coffee pods are made in Switzerland

It's eye-opening, for sure.

 

[TootsieFootsie]

I was going to do my bathroom next