Steel and aluminum tariffs...

[Winehole23]

The Rolex and the $130,000 gold bar dispelled the national trade deficit emergency



When President Donald Trump ordered a whopping 39 percent tariff on all imports from Switzerland (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/04/business/trump-tariffs-switzerland.html) earlier this year, he did so, of course, by claiming there was a national emergency.


Officially, Trump's executive order (https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/07/further-modifying-the-reciprocal-tariff-rates/) pointed to "large and persistent annual U.S. goods trade deficits" that, the president claims, "constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and economy of the United States." Because this was part of Trump's push for what he called "reciprocal" tariffs, the executive order also pointed toward "foreign trading partners' disparate tariff rates" that were supposedly to blame for the trade imbalance.
Right from the start, that didn't make a whole lot of sense.


For one, Switzerland had minuscule tariffs (an average rate of 0.2 percent) on American imports. As I pointed out at the time (https://reason.com/2025/08/18/trump-promised-reciprocal-tariffs-the-numbers-tell-a-different-story/), if Trump were seeking "reciprocal" tariffs with the Swiss, he would have to lower America's tariffs rather than raise them.


For another: The very existence of a U.S. trade deficit with Switzerland (which totaled $38.3 billion last year (https://ustr.gov/countries-regions/europe-middle-east/europe/switzerland)) seemed to undermine the entire logic behind Trump's trade war. If having higher tariffs than your trading partner was the secret to ending trade deficits, as the Trump administration seems to believe, then why did America have a trade deficit with a country like Switzerland in the first place?


Still, possibly the most confusing part of this announcement was the premise that imported chocolate, pharmaceutical drugs, and fancy watches somehow constitute an emergency requiring a huge (and possibly unlawful) expansion of executive power. If Americans want to buy things (https://usafacts.org/answers/what-is-the-value-of-us-trade/countries/switzerland/) from people and businesses in Switzerland, that doesn't seem like it should be any of the president's business.


Good news: That emergency is now over!
https://reason.com/2025/11/17/the-emergency-that-demanded-huge-tariffs-on-swiss-imports-is-now-over-so-what-was-the-emergency/

[Winehole23]

There are two possibilities here. You can believe that the vaguely defined economic emergency that required such huge tariffs on Swiss imports is already over, just a few months after those tariffs were imposed and despite the trade deficit seemingly growing rather than shrinking. If so, then you have to accept that Americans peacefully exchanging their money for chocolates, drugs, and watches were somehow undermining America's economic security for years—but that those exact same transactions are now totally fine, because of the higher tariffs that no longer exist.


The other possibility is that no such emergency ever actually existed, and that the president's idea of what constitutes an emergency depends largely on who is paying him homage and what gifts they might leave behind. If so, then you'd have to question the entire rationale behind all of Trump's so-called reciprocal tariffs, many of which make no more sense than the ones imposed on Swiss goods.


And you'd have to wonder whether Trump's trade war is really aimed at benefitting the country—or reducing the trade deficit, or promoting manufacturing jobs, or whatever rationale (https://reason.com/2025/06/27/90-deals-in-90-days-trumps-trade-war-is-failing-on-its-own-terms/) the White House is trotting out today (https://reason.com/2025/04/03/the-trade-war-were-losing-to-ourselves/). As it stands, the stakes appear to be significantly more personal.

[BadMotorscooter]

Wine Ho triggered over everything Trump......lmao.....as usual...do you want to debate the tariffs, Wine Ho?

[DMX7]

Ironically, it's wealthier people who are paying most of the tariffs and yet liberals hate them.

[BadMotorscooter]

Wine Ho triggered over everything Trump......lmao.....as usual...do you want to debate the tariffs, Wine Ho?

C'mon, Whine Ho.....lets just have a simple debate on the tariffs. I'll probably lose but why not?

[Winehole23]

C'mon, Whine Ho.....lets just have a simple debate on the tariffs. I'll probably lose but why not?great, go ahead

[ChumpDumper]

Ironically, it's wealthier people who are paying most of the tariffs and yet liberals hate them.

This is a stupid point.

Are you still in favor of the tariffs?

[DMX7]

This is a stupid point.

Are you still in favor of the tariffs?

It’s a great point. I am in favor of the tariffs because they raise desperately needed tax revenue and benefit American producer competitiveness.

[ChumpDumper]

It’s a great point. I am in favor of the tariffs because they raise desperately needed tax revenue and benefit American producer competitiveness.Which American producers have become more competitive and how?

How is the revenue desperately needed when Trump just rescinds the tariffs and promises to pay $2k to everyone making under $100k.

Show your math.

[Winehole23]

I am in favor of the tariffs because they raise desperately needed tax revenueso you're for higher taxes, but only so long as they are imposed (and removed) at the president's whim?

[Blake]

Which American producers have become more competitive and how?

How is the revenue desperately needed when Trump just rescinds the tariffs and promises to pay $2k to everyone making under $100k.

Show your math.


By my calculations, he will produce zero results to back up his post.

[Winehole23]

C'mon, Whine Ho.....lets just have a simple debate on the tariffs. I'll probably lose but why not?Ok, I'll start

The US constitution gives the taxation power to Congress, including explicitly tariffs

Trump's trade deficit national emergency is a bullshit emergency he's leveraging to coerce the whole world at once with anti-competitive duties

It's a dumb idea, and it's facially illegal; taxing belongs to Congress, and his pretext is bullshit

It also hasn't decreased the trade deficit, in part because punitive tariffs hurt imports too

[Winehole23]

(when you undertake to bully the whole world, don't be surprised when it thinks somewhat less of you)

[Winehole23]

the total abandonment of moral reciprocity and historical ties of allegiance stands out

how will Americans be treated abroad after Trump?

[Winehole23]

Ok, I'll start

The US constitution gives the taxation power to Congress, including explicitly tariffs

Trump's trade deficit national emergency is a bullshit emergency he's leveraging to coerce the whole world at once with anti-competitive duties

It's a dumb idea, and it's facially illegal; taxing belongs to Congress, and his pretext is bullshit

It also hasn't decreased the trade deficit, in part because punitive tariffs hurt imports tooCanada is buying no booze from Kentucky

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreicn2mvlgjpyretz7mktdy6iydwpwtprurpasmcglb6w5 nptb2kmsu@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gftip5r3dmyojn5lat333pp5/bafkreid3zj4vg52uzk2l6dtsp242udl5fcsuqavc2py6dsr6i ehroubobq@jpeg

[TSA]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:gftip5r3dmyojn5lat333pp5/bafkreid3zj4vg52uzk2l6dtsp242udl5fcsuqavc2py6dsr6i ehroubobq@jpeg

https://x.com/briefing_block_/status/1990423627725205682

https://x.com/RealEJAntoni/status/1990829221846155769

:lol winehole

[ChumpDumper]

Democratic New York bucking the national trend?

Wow.

Why is Trump rescinding his tariffs, TSA?

[Winehole23]

Ok, I'll start

The US constitution gives the taxation power to Congress, including explicitly tariffs

Trump's trade deficit national emergency is a bullshit emergency he's leveraging to coerce the whole world at once with anti-competitive duties

It's a dumb idea, and it's facially illegal; taxing belongs to Congress, and his pretext is bullshit

It also hasn't decreased the trade deficit, in part because punitive tariffs hurt imports tooOk, Boomerfair

I'll help you out: tariffs have hurt imports but they have brought down the trade deficit too.

You're not even trying...

[sickdsm]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreicn2mvlgjpyretz7mktdy6iydwpwtprurpasmcglb6w5 nptb2kmsu@jpeg

LOL

Prices higher than last year, COVID era inflation on crop inputs are going crazy. Profits have been phenomenal, everyone looking to expand acres. With people like you trying desperately to find what you want to believe, no wonder CNN fell hard for the splorn troll.

[Winehole23]

LOL

Prices higher than last year, COVID era inflation on crop inputs are going crazy. Profits have been phenomenal, everyone looking to expand acres. With people like you trying desperately to find what you want to believe, no wonder CNN fell hard for the splorn troll.Prices of what?

[Winehole23]

LOL

Prices higher than last year, COVID era inflation on crop inputs are going crazy. Profits have been phenomenal, everyone looking to expand acres. With people like you trying desperately to find what you want to believe, no wonder CNN fell hard for the splorn troll.what do you think of the president having the taxing power?

[Winehole23]

do you think taxes should be an executive kitty?

[Winehole23]

https://external-content.duckduckgo.com/iu/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fframemark.vam.ac.uk%2Fcollections %2F2006BC7369%2Ffull%2F735%2C%2F0%2Fdefault.jpg&f=1&nofb=1&ipt=65edae932e54acc93ca269b8122e3637b9592e9d707104 f4d0cc0f32f87bb924

[Blake]

LOL

Prices higher than last year, COVID era inflation on crop inputs are going crazy. Profits have been phenomenal, everyone looking to expand acres. With people like you trying desperately to find what you want to believe, no wonder CNN fell hard for the splorn troll.

Lol "everyone looking to expand". That's sounds like something Trump would say. You tards fall hard for every lie he tells you.

[Winehole23]

It’s a great point. I am in favor of the tariffs because they raise desperately needed tax revenue and benefit American producer competitiveness.


so you're for higher taxes, but only so long as they are imposed (and removed) at the president's whim?and wait

Trump can impound all the appropriations too?

:lmao

[velik_m]

Trump quietly holds off on Canada tariff increase

President Donald Trump has yet to follow through on his threat to impose an additional 10 percent tariff on Canadian imports, four weeks after he halted “all trade negotiations” over an anti-tariff ad the province of Ontario ran during the Major League Baseball World Series.

“Because of their serious misrepresentation of the facts, and hostile act, I am increasing the Tariff on Canada by 10% over and above what they are paying now,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Oct. 25, after announcing two days earlier that he was terminating trade talks over the the ”egregious” ad.

Trump’s announcement had Canadian exporters preparing for a worst-case scenario: a sweeping levy layered on top of existing double-digit duties, which would have been particularly painful for industries like autos, where components cross the border multiple times before reaching their final form.

But to date, the Trump administration hasn’t sent any official documentation ordering U.S. Customs and Border Protection to enforce the new, higher duty, and U.S. importers have not received any new regulatory guidance.

...


https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/23/canada-tariffs-trump-00663710

[sickdsm]

Prices of what?

Lol, guessing you didn't read your own copy/paste. Do you know what row crops are?

[sickdsm]

Lol "everyone looking to expand". That's sounds like something Trump would say. You tards fall hard for every lie he tells you.

LOL, even AI knows i'm right.

"Are farmers looking to add acres?"


Yes, many farmers are looking to add acres, which is a persistent trend driven by the desire to expand operations, achieve economies of scale, and capitalize on new farm bill provisions.
Key drivers of farmers adding acres include:
Economies of Scale and Financial Viability: Expanding acreage is a primary way for farmers to increase efficiency and profitability, especially given high input costs and narrow profit margins. The need to leverage expensive, specialized equipment and infrastructure often necessitates a larger land base.
Competition and Investment: Farmland is increasingly seen as a stable, long-term asset by institutional investors, which drives up land prices. To compete with these investors and prevent land from falling into corporate hands, neighboring farmers are often highly motivated to purchase available land, sometimes stretching their finances to do so.
Generational Transfer and Land Access: A significant amount of U.S. farmland is expected to change hands in the coming decades. New and beginning farmers face significant challenges accessing affordable land, and existing farmers often seek to acquire more land to pass on to future generations or to ensure the viability of their family farms.
Government Programs (Base Acres): Recent legislation, specifically the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (part of the 2025 Farm Bill), provides provisions for farmers to add up to 30 million new "base acres" nationwide for the 2026 crop year. This policy aims to better align historical planting records with current farm program eligibility and offers an incentive for farmers to formally add eligible acreage to their operations.
Market Dynamics: Acreage shifts can also occur in response to commodity prices. For example, some areas saw shifts to corn planting due to poor cotton prices, indicating a dynamic approach to maximizing the profitability of available land.
Overall, the long-term trend in U.S. agriculture is towards fewer, but larger, farms, which inherently means successful farmers are looking to expand their acreage. Farmers actively looking for land often post in local forums and networks to find available row crop ground or pasture.

[sickdsm]

what do you think of the president having the taxing power?

Pivot much?

[Winehole23]

LOL, even AI knows i'm right.

"Are farmers looking to add acres?"


Yes, many farmers are looking to add acres, which is a persistent trend driven by the desire to expand operations, achieve economies of scale, and capitalize on new farm bill provisions.
Key drivers of farmers adding acres include:
Economies of Scale and Financial Viability: Expanding acreage is a primary way for farmers to increase efficiency and profitability, especially given high input costs and narrow profit margins. The need to leverage expensive, specialized equipment and infrastructure often necessitates a larger land base.
Competition and Investment: Farmland is increasingly seen as a stable, long-term asset by institutional investors, which drives up land prices. To compete with these investors and prevent land from falling into corporate hands, neighboring farmers are often highly motivated to purchase available land, sometimes stretching their finances to do so.
Generational Transfer and Land Access: A significant amount of U.S. farmland is expected to change hands in the coming decades. New and beginning farmers face significant challenges accessing affordable land, and existing farmers often seek to acquire more land to pass on to future generations or to ensure the viability of their family farms.
Government Programs (Base Acres): Recent legislation, specifically the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (part of the 2025 Farm Bill), provides provisions for farmers to add up to 30 million new "base acres" nationwide for the 2026 crop year. This policy aims to better align historical planting records with current farm program eligibility and offers an incentive for farmers to formally add eligible acreage to their operations.
Market Dynamics: Acreage shifts can also occur in response to commodity prices. For example, some areas saw shifts to corn planting due to poor cotton prices, indicating a dynamic approach to maximizing the profitability of available land.
Overall, the long-term trend in U.S. agriculture is towards fewer, but larger, farms, which inherently means successful farmers are looking to expand their acreage. Farmers actively looking for land often post in local forums and networks to find available row crop ground or pasture.what does the median farmer looking to add acres look like?

the larger and fewer?

lol letting AI do your homework for you and having nothing to say about it

[Winehole23]

Pivot much?I answered you and before that asked your opinion on two things

You can continue to dodge if you want

[Winehole23]

Lol, guessing you didn't read your own copy/paste. Do you know what row crops are?I've heard of that.

Are you talking about specific commodities, or all of the row crops?

[ChumpDumper]

LOL, even AI knows i'm right.

"Are farmers looking to add acres?"


Yes, many farmers are looking to add acres, which is a persistent trend driven by the desire to expand operations, achieve economies of scale, and capitalize on new farm bill provisions.
Key drivers of farmers adding acres include:
Economies of Scale and Financial Viability: Expanding acreage is a primary way for farmers to increase efficiency and profitability, especially given high input costs and narrow profit margins. The need to leverage expensive, specialized equipment and infrastructure often necessitates a larger land base.
Competition and Investment: Farmland is increasingly seen as a stable, long-term asset by institutional investors, which drives up land prices. To compete with these investors and prevent land from falling into corporate hands, neighboring farmers are often highly motivated to purchase available land, sometimes stretching their finances to do so.
Generational Transfer and Land Access: A significant amount of U.S. farmland is expected to change hands in the coming decades. New and beginning farmers face significant challenges accessing affordable land, and existing farmers often seek to acquire more land to pass on to future generations or to ensure the viability of their family farms.
Government Programs (Base Acres): Recent legislation, specifically the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (part of the 2025 Farm Bill), provides provisions for farmers to add up to 30 million new "base acres" nationwide for the 2026 crop year. This policy aims to better align historical planting records with current farm program eligibility and offers an incentive for farmers to formally add eligible acreage to their operations.
Market Dynamics: Acreage shifts can also occur in response to commodity prices. For example, some areas saw shifts to corn planting due to poor cotton prices, indicating a dynamic approach to maximizing the profitability of available land.
Overall, the long-term trend in U.S. agriculture is towards fewer, but larger, farms, which inherently means successful farmers are looking to expand their acreage. Farmers actively looking for land often post in local forums and networks to find available row crop ground or pasture.

Is AI making new arable land?

[Blake]

LOL, even AI knows i'm right.

"Are farmers looking to add acres?"


Yes, many farmers are looking to add acres, which is a persistent trend driven by the desire to expand operations, achieve economies of scale, and capitalize on new farm bill provisions.
Key drivers of farmers adding acres include:
Economies of Scale and Financial Viability: Expanding acreage is a primary way for farmers to increase efficiency and profitability, especially given high input costs and narrow profit margins. The need to leverage expensive, specialized equipment and infrastructure often necessitates a larger land base.
Competition and Investment: Farmland is increasingly seen as a stable, long-term asset by institutional investors, which drives up land prices. To compete with these investors and prevent land from falling into corporate hands, neighboring farmers are often highly motivated to purchase available land, sometimes stretching their finances to do so.
Generational Transfer and Land Access: A significant amount of U.S. farmland is expected to change hands in the coming decades. New and beginning farmers face significant challenges accessing affordable land, and existing farmers often seek to acquire more land to pass on to future generations or to ensure the viability of their family farms.
Government Programs (Base Acres): Recent legislation, specifically the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" (part of the 2025 Farm Bill), provides provisions for farmers to add up to 30 million new "base acres" nationwide for the 2026 crop year. This policy aims to better align historical planting records with current farm program eligibility and offers an incentive for farmers to formally add eligible acreage to their operations.
Market Dynamics: Acreage shifts can also occur in response to commodity prices. For example, some areas saw shifts to corn planting due to poor cotton prices, indicating a dynamic approach to maximizing the profitability of available land.
Overall, the long-term trend in U.S. agriculture is towards fewer, but larger, farms, which inherently means successful farmers are looking to expand their acreage. Farmers actively looking for land often post in local forums and networks to find available row crop ground or pasture.

Neat lemme ask AI too:

"Farm economy"

"The farm economy is currently facing challenges, with a major strain from high production costs and low crop prices, though the livestock sector is performing better. While net farm income is forecast to increase in 2025, a significant portion of this growth is due to government payments rather than market-driven revenue, and many farmers, particularly in row crops, are struggling to be profitable. Factors like high interest expenses on debt and a continued imbalance between supply and demand for crops are key concerns. "

https://www.fb.org/market-intel/declining-farm-economy-continues-to-pressure-profitability#:~:text=For%20most%20of%20the%20coun try,from%20COVID%2D19%20pandemic%20highs.

Do you think subsidizing farms because of Trump tariffs is a good thing? You guys need to make your minds up on of you hate socialism or not

[Winehole23]

(I hear Trump is putting off tariff-struck farmers too, fwiw)

[Winehole23]

it's really amazing how the president has taxing and spending power now

[sickdsm]

what does the median farmer looking to add acres look like?

the larger and fewer?

lol letting AI do your homework for you and having nothing to say about it


Are you honestly trying to imply that the smallest farms don't want to get bigger?

[sickdsm]

Neat lemme ask AI too:

"Farm economy"

"The farm economy is currently facing challenges, with a major strain from high production costs and low crop prices, though the livestock sector is performing better. While net farm income is forecast to increase in 2025, a significant portion of this growth is due to government payments rather than market-driven revenue, and many farmers, particularly in row crops, are struggling to be profitable. Factors like high interest expenses on debt and a continued imbalance between supply and demand for crops are key concerns. "

https://www.fb.org/market-intel/declining-farm-economy-continues-to-pressure-profitability#:~:text=For%20most%20of%20the%20coun try,from%20COVID%2D19%20pandemic%20highs.

Do you think subsidizing farms because of Trump tariffs is a good thing? You guys need to make your minds up on of you hate socialism or not


Bark up a different tree. I'm against all farmer welfare. It's there in most countries to keep the supermarket consistent.

[Winehole23]

Are you honestly trying to imply that the smallest farms don't want to get bigger?Nope

Your AI pony says the trend in ag is toward consolidation -- bigger and fewer producers. If accurate, that suggests small farmers are getting their acreage swallowed up by bigger ones

[Winehole23]

I answered your questions, why are you ducking mine, sickdsm?

too chicken on an anonymous board to speak your mind?

:lol

[sickdsm]

Nope

Your AI pony says the trend in ag is toward consolidation -- bigger and fewer producers. If accurate, that suggests small farmers are getting their acreage swallowed up by bigger ones

/getting swallowed up by the more efficient aggressive farms.

Pretty much capitalism on any industry.

[sickdsm]

I answered your questions, why are you ducking mine, sickdsm?

too chicken on an anonymous board to speak your mind?

:lol


I have no idea what the hell you are trying to ask. Something about where iphones should be manufactured at? Its like you went to Chump's school of copy/paste and ask vague yes/no questions without ever giving any actual personal thought.

The student has now become the teacher on that tactic though.

[sickdsm]

I've heard of that.

Are you talking about specific commodities, or all of the row crops?

There's one row crop that's been the target of China tariffs that set the price of the rest of them.

I'll let you guess which one has been the main news headline.

[Winehole23]

(Soybeans)

[Winehole23]

what do you think of Trump having the power to lay taxes?

do you think it's ok for POTUS to use tariff money and impounded appropriations to do whatever he wants?

[Blake]

Bark up a different tree. I'm against all farmer welfare. It's there in most countries to keep the supermarket consistent.

Are you pro tariffs?

[Winehole23]

Are you pro tariffs?sickdsm is apparently allergic to talking about the politics on an anonymous politics subforum

[Blake]

sickdsm is apparently allergic to talking about the politics on an anonymous politics subforum

Meh, these Trump tards always post their opinions from a position of intellectual superiority by run away when asked to back up their claims

[ChumpDumper]

Most big factory farms are looking to become bigger factory farms.

:lolIs this what AI is for?

[Blake]

Most big factory farms are looking to become bigger factory farms.

:lolIs this what AI is for?

You'll need to ask AI

[sickdsm]

Meh, these Trump tards always post their opinions from a position of intellectual superiority by run away when asked to back up their claims

Run away = post and come back a few days or weeks later like i've done for 20 years and reply. I don't live to reply every 3 minutes like most here.

[sickdsm]

Most big factory farms are looking to become bigger factory farms.

:lolIs this what AI is for?

Guys still can't figure out that AI is literally just a summary of the google search results. Prefer copy/paste from the one that fits the idea they love the best.

[sickdsm]

what do you think of Trump having the power to lay taxes?

do you think it's ok for POTUS to use tariff money and impounded appropriations to do whatever he wants?

I think the balance of the three branches of govt are important but in my lifetime it's got pretty bad. He's not the first to do what he wants with disregard and won't be the last. I think the correct way would have not been to use tariffs to bring manufacturing back but no one including you or I are ready to face the pain that goes along with it.

America is pretty fucked at this point. The people that get mad at one presidency just maybe were a little spoiled previously. Might have been free healthcare, subsidies, etc. New adminstration comes and its a differnt group mad. Pendulum keeps swinging back and forth.

[velik_m]

India economy grows at faster-than-expected 8.2% in September quarter even as tariffs bite

In a quarter partially affected by the 50% U.S. tariffs, the Indian economy grew faster than expected at an annual rate of 8.2% in the quarter ending in September.

The growth was an acceleration from 7.8% in the previous quarter, when a lower deflator unexpectedly boosted real growth. A deflator measures how inflation affects the value of total output.

A Reuters poll of economists had pegged the July-September gross domestic product at 7.3%.

India’s nominal GDP — which does not account for inflation or deflation — grew 8.7% in the September quarter compared to 8.8% in the previous quarter.

The sharp improvement in GDP growth rate was on account of a pick up in manufacturing and construction activity and domestic consumption. Financial and real estate professional services have “sustained a substantial growth rate” of 10.2% in Jul-Sep, the government said in a release.

...


https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/28/india-economy-gdp-grows-september-quarter-tariffs-bite-trade-us-modi.html

[Winehole23]

I think the balance of the three branches of govt are important but in my lifetime it's got pretty bad. He's not the first to do what he wants with disregard and won't be the last. I think the correct way would have not been to use tariffs to bring manufacturing back but no one including you or I are ready to face the pain that goes along with it.

America is pretty fucked at this point. The people that get mad at one presidency just maybe were a little spoiled previously. Might have been free healthcare, subsidies, etc. New adminstration comes and its a differnt group mad. Pendulum keeps swinging back and forth.I agree that Trump is fucking America, and I'm totally ready for SCOTUS to tell Donald trump his tariffs are illegal

[Blake]

Guys still can't figure out that AI is literally just a summary of the google search results. Prefer copy/paste from the one that fits the idea they love the best.

Right, that's exactly what you did

[velik_m]

Blue-Collar Jobs Are Collapsing Under Trump

Coverage of the labor market in 2025 has taken on a decidedly white-collar tone, with artificial intelligence being cast as the principal long-term threat to the American workforce.

With the ability to write billions of lines of code daily and conduct other repetitive, cognitive tasks at scales and speeds humans could never challenge, such fears are not unfounded, and AI has already been cited in many of the mass reductions announced by Amazon and other corporations in recent weeks.

But for all the hand-wringing over the potentially ill-fated employees of Silicon Valley and Wall Street, a quieter crisis appears to be unfolding for the U.S.'s blue-collar employees, despite the pledges and efforts of the current administration to foster a renaissance in marquee industries such as construction and manufacturing.

...

Of the five industry groups or "supersectors" that could be broadly considered "blue collar"—manufacturing, mining and logging, transportation and warehousing, utilities, and construction—only the latter saw an increase in September. Construction's 19,000-job gain was also insufficient to offset the monthly loss of 25,300 jobs in transportation or manufacturing shedding a further 6,000.

Year-over-year changes show that annual payroll declines have accelerated since January—albeit continuing a long-term trend—and have pushed blue-collar job growth into negative territory for the first time since the pandemic.

...

To Dean Baker, a co-founder of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, tariffs have been largely to blame for the uncertainty and "overall weakness in demand" that has driven cautious hiring across blue-collar sectors.

"Companies are reluctant to invest in a context where they have no idea what tariffs will be in place six months from now, much less three to five years from now," he told Newsweek. "Also, tariffs pull money out of consumers' pockets, reducing demand."

...


https://www.newsweek.com/blue-collar-jobs-are-collapsing-under-trump-11127115

[Winehole23]

Trump's tariffs are nakedly pretextual, it's not unthinkable SCOTUS will fuck him over on this


Costco Wholesale has sued the Trump administration, asking the Court of International Trade to consider all tariffs collected under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act unlawful.

The company said in a filing Friday that it is seeking a “full refund” of all duties under the act paid as a result of President Donald Trump's executive order that imposed what he called "reciprocal" tariffs.

“Because IEEPA does not clearly authorize the President to set tariffs ... the Challenged Tariff Orders cannot stand and the defendants are not authorized to implement and collect them,” Costco's lawyer writes in the lawsuit.


Global cosmetics giant Revlon, eyeglass maker EssilorLuxottica, motorcycle manufacturer Kawasaki, canned foods seller Bumble Bee, Japanese auto supplier Yokohama Tire and many smaller firms have also filed similar suitshttps://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/costco-sues-trump-tariff-refunds-rcna246860

[sickdsm]

Right, that's exactly what you did

I cherry picked a link that was slanted to what my opinion was?

Fuck off.

You've tried to portray me as a Trump guy when I think he's almost as shitty as Biden or Hillary.

You've tried to summarize me as a socialist because you assume farmers want subsidies.

Do you have any actual thoughts or do you just go along with what you think other people want to hear?

[Blake]

I cherry picked a link that was slanted to what my opinion was?

Fuck off.

You've tried to portray me as a Trump guy when I think he's almost as shitty as Biden or Hillary.

You've tried to summarize me as a socialist because you assume farmers want subsidies.

Do you have any actual thoughts or do you just go along with what you think other people want to hear?

yes, your question was slanted to AI to get the answer you wanted. If that's not "cherry picking", you tell me what it is and we'll roll with that.

Watch this:

"Are farmers looking to sell land?"

AI Mode

"Yes, many farmers are looking to sell land due to factors like an aging farmer population with no successors, financial pressures from rising costs, and incentives to sell to developers or solar companies....."

Golly look at that.

Why are you so sensitive? This is just a message board.

[sickdsm]

yes, your question was slanted to AI to get the answer you wanted. If that's not "cherry picking", you tell me what it is and we'll roll with that.

Watch this:

"Are farmers looking to sell land?"

AI Mode

"Yes, many farmers are looking to sell land due to factors like an aging farmer population with no successors, financial pressures from rising costs, and incentives to sell to developers or solar companies....."

Golly look at that.

Why are you so sensitive? This is just a message board.

Hey here's the resident farmer to say that's not right.

Blake: I don't believe you

AI Summary.......

Blake: I don't believe that.....

Reworded Web search to slant AI in a different direction....

Blake. I don't believe you.....

Are farms looking to downsize acres?

No, the overall trend is not downsizing, but rather consolidation of farms into fewer, larger operations. While individual farmers may choose to downsize for personal reasons, the general trend is a decline in the number of farms, an increase in average farm size, and a decrease in total farmland.

[Blake]

Hey here's the resident farmer to say that's not right.

Blake: I don't believe you

AI Summary.......

Blake: I don't believe that.....

Reworded Web search to slant AI in a different direction....

Blake. I don't believe you.....

Are farms looking to downsize acres?

No, the overall trend is not downsizing, but rather consolidation of farms into fewer, larger operations. While individual farmers may choose to downsize for personal reasons, the general trend is a decline in the number of farms, an increase in average farm size, and a decrease in total farmland.

Lol "downsize for personal reasons". What weak bullshit.

So much for your original point of "everyone's looking to expand"

[Winehole23]

at least sickdsm is kind of trying to say what he means

most conservative posters here won't or can't

[Blake]

at least sickdsm is kind of trying to say what he means

most conservative posters here won't or can't

F for effort I guess

[Winehole23]

F for effort I guessI would be more lenient, why not a D?

Effort was made, most posters here are content to gargle blood and cackle at others' miseries

[Winehole23]

Trump's import taxes have multiplied red tape and liability



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:jfex7pbe5p7nejruly6rnnhn/bafkreiepztj4vp3pxj6a4ukz7p4ohxafqqpa6xvfluphdcdun d24iennqu@jpeghttps://www.cato.org/blog/us-businesses-tariff-complexity-death-thousand-papercuts

[velik_m]

https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1997482442198769881

[Winehole23]

https://x.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1997482442198769881the freight/goods recession is real

hitting warehouses too

[Winehole23]

bailout for soybean farmers wrecked by Trump's tariffs


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:svawqo4jxobyyuqmixplvcux/bafkreibipcmcgu6wkm5weidntm74acsczdv6mtamwgzrklydn k7c2alykq@jpeghtps://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-to-unveil-12-billion-bailout-for-farmers-064eb1de?st=Ac7rZg

[velik_m]

China’s trade surplus tops $1 trillion as its exports surge

HONG KONG (AP) — China’s exports rebounded in November after an unexpected contraction the previous month, pushing its trade surplus past $1 trillion for the first time, according to data released Monday.

Exports climbed 5.9% from a year earlier in November while imports rose just under 2%.

The customs data released on Monday also showed that shipments to the U.S. dropped nearly 29% year-on-year. But as trade with the U.S. weakens, China is diversifying its export markets throughout Southeast Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America.

China’s exports had contracted just over 1% in October. November’s worldwide exports of $330.3 billion exceeded economists’ estimates. Imports totaled $218.6 billion for the month.

The nearly $1.08 trillion trade surplus for the first 11 months of this year is a record high, surpassing the $992 billion surplus for all of 2024, based on official data compiled by FactSet.

...


https://apnews.com/article/china-trade-tariffs-trump-exports-953ab5e9056cf7b21c00c54bec1d79dd

[ChumpDumper]

Just wait. China's gonna be begging to buy our factory bananas any day now.

[Blake]

Just wait. China's gonna be begging to buy our factory bananas any day now.

Side note, banana factory technician sounds like a great career for any new college graduate. MAGA!

[ChumpDumper]

Elon says Grok is will manufacture bananas on its own in about two years.

[sickdsm]

Lol "downsize for personal reasons". What weak bullshit.

So much for your original point of "everyone's looking to expand"

Are you trying to be dumb? Illness, divorce, death in the family, met someone and wants to move are all typical reasons.

But that's not everyone. Lol.

[sickdsm]

bailout for soybean farmers wrecked by Trump's tariffs

htps://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trump-to-unveil-12-billion-bailout-for-farmers-064eb1de?st=Ac7rZg

And very little of it will go to actual food producers.

Livestock guys aren't included.

John Deere posted a thank you note already for the welfare check.

[sickdsm]

at least sickdsm is kind of trying to say what he means

most conservative posters here won't or can't

Most left because of the constant shitposting here.

[Winehole23]

*yawns*

[Winehole23]

...and next-gen AI computer chips


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:fkp3bmnnmmsyv6j56ukdkljb/bafkreifqduqmlytnzknargo5lxh54pwircsgij2dpv2vemlpy epvezyi2q@jpeg

[velik_m]

https://www.foxbusiness.com/video/6386052711112

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:xlupw2b5v6f7dm5hpvsco4eq/bafkreifnowofmaex3szuzbulmpc325dvxo6n54idowppusc56 atqkzanrq@jpeg


the current situation, elevated inflation due to tariffs and a softening labor market, creates a tension where the Fed's single tool (interest rates) cannot perfectly address both problems simultaneously

[Winehole23]

It’s really tariffs that’s causing most of the inflation overshoot. And we do think of those as likely, in the current situation, as likely to be a onetime price increase. Our job is to make sure that it is.

[Winehole23]

*stagflationary vibes*

[Winehole23]

Trump's farmer subsidies are one-foot rope dangled to farmers standing in a twelve-foot hole


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreib6gxcnwg5oy77akrjjtf5vm4rh4ke7i3yidqlzsk3o2 vcf5m4u6y@jpeghttps://www.reuters.com/business/us-farmers-say-trumps-12-billion-aid-package-wont-cover-losses-2025-12-10/

[Winehole23]

crooked as hell, but also politically dumb


“It would be, I think, a political mistake to seek to deny refunds if the Supreme Court found that there was no basis to begin with to impose the tariffs,” said Alan Wolff, a former deputy director-general of the World Trade Organization and former U.S. trade official. “The idea that the government could act without legal authority and provide no remedy is not going to be acceptable.”https://www.politico.com/news/2025/12/14/trump-hardball-tariff-fees-trade-00689892

[sickdsm]

Trump's farmer subsidies are one-foot rope dangled to farmers standing in a twelve-foot hole

https://www.reuters.com/business/us-farmers-say-trumps-12-billion-aid-package-wont-cover-losses-2025-12-10/

"standing in a 12 foot hole"

Meanwhile everyone of those farmers are throwing another $40/acre on land prices trying to rent more.

[Winehole23]

"standing in a 12 foot hole"

Meanwhile everyone of those farmers are throwing another $40/acre on land prices trying to rent more.farmers are doing just fine, is your take?

[Winehole23]

lol "Garnett>Duncan"

[Winehole23]

"we're doing just fine"

(hats extended for $12 billion in emergency government subsidies)

[Winehole23]

the manufacturing jobs aren't coming back

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:rbffgd2zo6r7rmnklo2nlyy5/bafkreid26tsdsygb35gmo5vkwn4rizpok5mmrp5l6d7yjkbd2 seea2obi4@jpeg

[Winehole23]

things going just great for farmers, thanks for asking


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreicguxuazltkwzydmrsvvyqvkrate3oiiextz62qxfdrt dcql6firy@jpeg

[Blake]

"standing in a 12 foot hole"

Meanwhile everyone of those farmers are throwing another $40/acre on land prices trying to rent more.

Sounds interesting. Do you have a link where I can read more on this?

[velik_m]

Another Truck Company Goes Bankrupt And Lays Off 600 Drivers. A Trucker Reveals, ‘It’s Just Getting Worse’

...
Texas International Enterprises, a cross-border carrier based in Laredo, Texas, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and laid off 600 drivers. It’s one more sign of serious strain in a sector that many truckers say is collapsing under financial pressure.

According to a bankruptcy filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, the company reported between $10 million and $50 million in assets and liabilities. It also said more than 200 creditors are affected and that after administrative costs, there won’t be any money left for unsecured creditors.

The company, which operates 280 power units and 1,500 trailers, had an active status with the U.S. Department of Transportation and logged over 39 million miles in 2024.

But by this month, it joined the growing list of carriers shutting down amid falling freight rates, high costs, and slow demand.

...



https://offthefrontpage.com/another-truck-company-goes-bankrupt-and-lays-off-600-drivers/

[velik_m]

Shares of Chinese chipmaker MetaX soar nearly 700% in blockbuster Shanghai debut

Shares of Chinese chipmaker MetaX Integrated Circuits soared nearly 700% in their market debut in Shanghai on Wednesday, after the company raised nearly $600 million in its initial public offering.

Shares, which were priced at 104.66 yuan in the IPO, closed at 829 yuan on debut, marking a 692% jump.

Similar to Moore Threads, which saw a robust debut at the start of the month, MetaX develops graphics processing units for artificial intelligence applications, tapping into a fast-growing sector driven by rising adoption of AI services.

MetaX is part of a growing cohort of local chipmakers building AI processors, reflecting Beijing’s push to reduce dependence on U.S. chips following Washington’s tech curbs on export of high-end technology to China.

...



https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/17/chinese-chipmaker-metax-shares-soar-shanghai-debut.html

[sickdsm]

Sounds interesting. Do you have a link where I can read more on this?

I can find you a link stating a pro or con of any discussion. If you don't want to listen to boots on the ground info about what rent bids are you could be perusing auction data on them, calling real estate guys, sorting through data etc.


Sounds like you aren't familiar that all subsidies work their way back to the land.

[sickdsm]

farmers are doing just fine, is your take?

I'm saying it's all going back into the land prices. Inflation is the killer here. Grain prices aren't historically bad. Most of the welfare money ag received this past year and still will next year is the Biden doing, before tariffs took place. The $12b is the first Trump 2.0 era doing.

Do you want to hear that the sky is falling instead? I've committed to probably $750k on expansion/infrastructure/upgrading the past 3 months. Not sure why I would be doing that if it's that bad. I hope it gets worse so there's more opportunity for me. No other industry props up the worst operator's like ag, all backstopped by the govt. What prices do you feel are needed for minimal govt. involvement in ag?

[sickdsm]

things going just great for farmers, thanks for asking


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreicguxuazltkwzydmrsvvyqvkrate3oiiextz62qxfdrt dcql6firy@jpeg

You're going to lose your shit when you realize every senator pushes for pork barrel spending for their constituents.

[Blake]

I can find you a link stating a pro or con of any discussion. If you don't want to listen to boots on the ground info about what rent bids are you could be perusing auction data on them, calling real estate guys, sorting through data etc.


Sounds like you aren't familiar that all subsidies work their way back to the land.

So that's a no.

[Blake]

I'm saying it's all going back into the land prices. Inflation is the killer here. Grain prices aren't historically bad. Most of the welfare money ag received this past year and still will next year is the Biden doing, before tariffs took place. The $12b is the first Trump 2.0 era doing.

Do you want to hear that the sky is falling instead? I've committed to probably $750k on expansion/infrastructure/upgrading the past 3 months. Not sure why I would be doing that if it's that bad. I hope it gets worse so there's more opportunity for me. No other industry props up the worst operator's like ag, all backstopped by the govt. What prices do you feel are needed for minimal govt. involvement in ag?

No links. Ok.

[sickdsm]

No links. Ok.

Imagine thinking you cooked with that response.

[sickdsm]

lol "Garnett>Duncan"

Duncan would be just another quality big that doesn't belong in this era. Just like Ewing would be a situational role player.

KG would be a taller more athletic version of Butler with a better range. He'd be a problem as a SF. Giannis with more intensity and versatility. His favorite shot was his one foot in/one out of the 3pt line. Imagine running 4 down and trying to slow the game down trading slow 2's for fast 3's every possession.

[Winehole23]

Duncan would be just another quality big that doesn't belong in this era. Just like Ewing would be a situational role player.

KG would be a taller more athletic version of Butler with a better range. He'd be a problem as a SF. Giannis with more intensity and versatility. His favorite shot was his one foot in/one out of the 3pt line. Imagine running 4 down and trying to slow the game down trading slow 2's for fast 3's every possession.Don't get me wrong, Garnett was amazing for skill and longevity but Timmy was better in win shares later in his career and oh...

...how many rings? One more MVP too.

But agree 100%, Kevin Garnett was a proper monster and a very versatile player

[Winehole23]

The players played in the time that they played, not some fictional time in your head

https://www.sports-reference.com/stathead/basketball/vs/tim-duncan-vs-kevin-garnett

[Winehole23]

(Also, I'm not sure there's any player who played better than Tim Duncan after he couldn't jump very well anymore)

[Winehole23]

(Basketball savvy overcame physical limitation by a lot)

[Blake]

Imagine thinking you cooked with that response.

Well yeah. Why should anyone listen to random anecdotes from you and believe any numbers you post?

[ChumpDumper]

I'm saying it's all going back into the land prices. Inflation is the killer here. Grain prices aren't historically bad. Most of the welfare money ag received this past year and still will next year is the Biden doing, before tariffs took place. The $12b is the first Trump 2.0 era doing.OK, how much went out during the Biden era each year and how much is going out this year in regular subsidies above the $12b special bailout for people like you?

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreiagbgfkitzevmxey7ilt7paqxocj3hyzne2rr5sqlpsl yufimcmoq@jpeg

[velik_m]

Jim Beam shutting down bourbon production at Kentucky distillery for a year as Trump’s trade wars hit sales

Jim Beam, one of the largest makers of American whiskey globally, is shutting down bourbon production at one of its Kentucky distilleries for a year.

The move comes amid President Donald Trump’s trade war with Canada, which has contributed to a significant decline in U.S. liquor sales after the country ushered in a boycott of American booze, and as more young adults are cutting back on drinking.

Jim Beam, owned by Suntory Global Spirits, is one of Kentucky’s biggest bourbon producers.

The Bluegrass state’s $9 billion whiskey bourbon industry has been struggling to manage its abundant supply of liquor against the drop in demand.

...

There were nearly 1,500 employees at the James B. Beam Distilling Co. in Kentucky last year, according to the newspaper. The company said it was assessing “how best to utilize our workforce during this transition” in a statement to the outlet, and added it was in discussions with the union.

In March, following sweeping tariffs imposed by Trump, many Canadians decided to boycott American liquor in protest.

Industry group Distilled Spirits Council of the United States said that U.S. spirits exports plummeted 85 percent, falling below $10 million in the second quarter of 2025, which CEO Chris Swonger blamed on “persistent trade tensions.”

Swonger warned the figures signaled “a shift away from our great American spirits brands” and urged Trump “to help facilitate a lasting return to tariff-free trade with our longstanding trading partners.”

...


https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/jim-beam-distillery-trump-tariffs-b2888451.html

[velik_m]

China reduces US Treasury holdings to lowest level since 2008

China cut its US Treasury holdings in October to their lowest level in 17 years, the South China Morning Post reported Friday.

The nation's stockpile dropped to $688.7 billion in October from $700.5 billion in September, according to US Treasury Department data released on Thursday.

According to Chinese financial data company Wind, October's value was the lowest since November 2008 and represented a more than 47% decline from the roughly $1.32 trillion peak in November 2013.

China continued the decline in its US Treasury holdings that began in US President Donald Trump's first term, falling to third place among foreign Treasury holdings in March, behind Japan and the UK.

This year, the tendency has persisted amid ongoing concerns about the sustainability of US debt, especially in light of this summer's One Big Beautiful Bill and concerns about the independence of the Fed as the White House pushes for lower interest rates.
...



https://www.aa.com.tr/en/economy/china-reduces-us-treasury-holdings-to-lowest-level-since-2008/3775470

[Winehole23]

Q3 GDP estimate beat -- this is good news

Prices also went up


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:gftip5r3dmyojn5lat333pp5/bafkreiguzytefbneipobacutv6jtpgj3eoif2jolellbfcfry rjnqsobc4@jpeg

[Winehole23]

(also rising unemployment and low consumer confidence)

[Winehole23]

(what's it called when prices and unemployment rise at the same time?)

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:hbpefio3f5csc44msmbgioxz/bafkreib633fgo6lby26mtukhuoxqdcx4rauj3qvtnw5fbximr n6zrlhrqi@jpeg

[Winehole23]

4.3% is a pretty good real GDP

maybe if SCOTUS scotches the tariffs we can rebound economically, Trump inherited a strong US economy

[velik_m]

Trump's 'Liberation Day' Tariffs Worked — They Liberated Americans From Their Jobs

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s vaunted “Liberation Day” tariffs have worked — if liberating Americans from their jobs was the actual goal.

The nation’s manufacturing sector, the very one Trump purportedly wanted to help with his import taxes, has instead been losing jobs every single month since he announced them in April. In all, there are now 67,000 fewer manufacturing jobs than when he imposed tariffs on most imports.

That result is exactly the opposite of what Trump promised and predicted when he announced them on April 2.

“We created 10,000, already in a few weeks, new manufacturing jobs and that took place in one month, numbers that they haven’t seen in a long time,” Trump said, lying, to cheering supporters in what was still the Rose Garden, prior to his having paved it over. “Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country and you see it happening already.”

His overall jobs numbers are just as grim, according to statistics compiled by his own Department of Labor, particularly compared to predecessor Joe Biden’s robust record on that front. Over four years, Biden’s economy added more than 4 million jobs per year, or 336,225 per month.

“It’s not just tariffs,” said University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers. “It’s also uncertainty, chaos, incompetence, and a radical and idiosyncratic approach to economic policy.”

...


https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-weak-jobs-numbers_n_69496c1ce4b0c3ddb223098a

[Winehole23]

Tariffs have increased the cost of US manufacturing by 1-2%, according to this study


Given the high pass-through to import prices and the importance of imported inputsin U.S. manufacturing, much of the incidence of the tariffs falls on U.S. producers. Wecombine input-output data with our trade and pass-through analysis to calculate whatwe call a “production tariff” rate, a hypothetical tax rate on production costs thatmight have an equivalent impact on U.S. manufacturing as the import tariffs. Forsome sectors that rely heavily on imported inputs from affected exporters, the increase in production tariffs commonly exceeds 2 percentage points. For the manufacturingsector as a whole, we calculate that production tariffs have increased by more than 1percentage point in 2025. https://brentneiman.com/research/GN2.pdf

[Winehole23]

corporate bankruptcies markedly up in 2025


Corporate bankruptcies (https://www.independent.co.uk/us/money/saks-neiman-marcus-bankruptcy-debt-b2889864.html) soared to a 15-year high in 2025 as companies struggled to cope with President Donald Trump (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-secret-service-threats-protests-watchdog-b2890954.html)’s trade wars (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/donald-trump-new-york-america-canada-white-house-b2889545.html), among other factors, according to a new report.


No fewer than 717 companies (https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/12/27/corporate-bankruptcies-economy/) filed for Chapter 7 or Chapter 11 bankruptcy between January and November, according to S&P data reviewed by The Washington Post. This marks a 14 percent increase from the same period in 2024 and the highest rate since 2010, when the country was recovering from the Great Recession.


Firms that went bust pointed to inflation, interest rates and Trump’s trade policies (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-tariffs-canada-jim-beam-b2889818.html) — which have hampered supply chains and increased costs — as drivers of their financial troubles.



Business experts and economists told the Post that the Republican president’s broad tariffs (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-presidential-power-quinnipiac-poll-b2887201.html) have strained import-dependent companies. While inflation recently came in lower than expected — it was up 2.7 percent year-over-year in November — experts said many firms continue to shoulder added expenses to avoid raising prices for consumers.


“These companies are acutely aware of the affordability crisis confronting the average American,” Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, a professor at Yale University’s school of management, told the outlet. “They are doing their best to offset the cost of tariffs and higher interest rates but can only do so much. Those with pricing power will pass on the costs over time … others will fold.”
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/corporate-bankruptcies-increase-trump-trade-wars-b2890965.html

[velik_m]

The Unexpected Winner of Rising American Tariffs Is Mexico

MEXICO CITY—When President Trump began raising tariffs earlier this year, government officials and economists feared Mexico’s export-led economy would take a devastating hit. Instead, Mexican exports to the U.S. have grown.

Because Mexico’s ultimate tariff rate ended up lower than for most other countries, the disparity has helped Mexican exports fill some of the gap left by Chinese products subject to higher levies.

Producers seeking a foothold in the U.S. have said that Mexico still has all the inherent advantages it had before tariffs—proximity to the U.S., a low-cost manufacturing industry and a frayed but intact free-trade agreement.

Even with steep tariffs on autos, steel and aluminum bound for America, Mexican manufacturing exports to the U.S. rose almost 9% from January to November, compared with the first 11 months of 2024, according to Mexican government data. Auto-industry exports to the U.S. fell close to 6% during the period, but exports of other manufactured goods surged 17%.

Trade in goods between the U.S. and Mexico is on track to reach a record of nearly $900 billion this year.

...


https://www.wsj.com/economy/trade/mexico-exports-us-trump-tariffs-e891510a?st=17jhoH

[Winehole23]

not replacing the income tax anytime soon


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:stxa6feprpgswkh7nm4cwzhx/bafkreiekjeramgkakgctpi66ogoyoocpklra4w4mqyxqlx3sm 5fwiam6j4@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:2tjnqjbnqampayvk4hez7q3h/bafkreibkclkbdsgb2orlifanyj4de7ikm6pyimmxona4wepe4 uiy2fkflm@jpeg

[velik_m]

Exodus of U.S. clients pushes Korean battery makers to the brink

...

The latest termination originated from Freudenberg's decision to exit the battery business due to sluggish demand. Under the original plan, the U.S. firm planned to assemble battery modules produced by LG Energy Solution into complete battery packs and supply them to major North American commercial vehicle manufacturers, including those producing large buses and electric trucks.

Earlier on Dec. 17, LG Energy Solution also disclosed the cancellation of a $6.5 billion deal with Ford Motor.

The termination is widely attributed to the contraction of the North American EV market, triggered by the Donald Trump administration’s decision to roll back the $7,500 EV tax credit. With subsidies withdrawn, automakers have increasingly scaled back their commitment to EVs, dampening demand across the supply chain.

Ford suspended production of the F-150 Lightning electric pickup and has recalibrated its strategy to prioritize higher-margin hybrid models and internal combustion engine vehicles.

LG Energy on Wednesday also moved to shore up liquidity by selling buildings, equipment and other assets of its U.S. joint venture with Honda to the Japanese automaker's U.S. subsidiary for about 4.2 trillion won.

...

“With raw material prices fluctuating on a daily basis, manufacturers cannot keep facilities running continuously by building inventory in advance without any sight of a sale,” Lee added. “With LFP having already emerged as the industry standard, Korean companies must seriously ask themselves whether they can still secure meaningful competitiveness in a scenario in which the United States lowers tariffs for Chinese products.”

The combined market share of Korea’s three major battery manufacturers in the European EV battery market stood at 35 percent between January and October this year, marking a 10 percentage point decline from the level recorded at the end of 2024, according to SNE Research.

During the same period, Chinese brands claimed 64 percent.



https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/news/2025-12-27/business/industry/Exodus-of-US-clients-pushes-Korean-battery-makers-to-the-brink-/2487566

[Winehole23]

Trump for some reason wants the US technical base to remain in the 20th century, setting the whole country back and ceding the edge in energy transformation to China and others

It isn't working

https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/clean-energy/the-year-trump-tried-and-failed-to-stop-clean-energy

[velik_m]

Donald Trump Changes His Mind on Tariffs Again

...
On Wednesday, Trump signed a presidential proclamation delaying the implementation of increased tariffs on specific imported goods for one year that were set to begin January 1, 2026.

A fact sheet provided by the White House says: “Today, President Donald J. Trump signed a Proclamation invoking Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 (Act) to delay increases in tariffs for upholstered furniture, kitchen cabinets, and vanities for another year.”

...


https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-changes-mind-tariffs-11294283

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:6m7rbdgaz5vyg4bnbefi7kh6/bafkreiaphz37dkxkah5rgruszuq5632haq6cwfrgppzkv32x5 sb5a5nyzm@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreifsci5gqvspujfycn6tqrkwbywelvgd5k3nddo6vwdmn p3gbwbqqm@jpeg(can read with free account)https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/09/business/economy/european-union-mercosur-trade.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

[Winehole23]

Liberation Day pitched us into a jobs recession...very weak numbers starting in May


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:nzcjpprq6fwcdnwpc45e3gsd/bafkreifksvty7fgdqhpmf55uydawilyp3hrhtrgryp32txamy lm7izhkee@jpeg

[Winehole23]

is this what winning looks like?


China announced record export numbers for 2025, a year when US President Donald Trump's tariffs and trade policy caused turmoil in the global economy.


Beijing on Wednesday reported the world's largest-ever trade surplus - the value of goods and services sold overseas compared to its imports - at $1.19tn (£890bn).


It's the first time China's full-year trade surplus has passed $1tn, beating 2024's record figure of $993bn.


China's monthly export surpluses passed $100bn seven times last year - a sign that Trump's tariff campaign have barely affected its overall trade with the rest of the world.



Trade with the US did weaken, but this was made up for by a rise in Chinese exports elsewhere, especially to South East Asia, Africa and Latin America.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9wx1v84rzyo

[velik_m]

Canada, China slash EV, canola tariffs in reset of ties

BEIJING, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Canada and China have struck an initial trade deal that will slash tariffs on electric vehicles and canola, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Friday, as both nations promised to tear down trade barriers while forging new strategic ties.

The first Canadian prime minister to visit China since 2017, Carney is seeking to rebuild ties with his country's second-largest trading partner after the United States following months of diplomatic efforts.

Canada will initially allow in up to 49,000 Chinese electric vehicles at a tariff of 6.1% on most-favoured nation terms, Carney said after talks with Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping. He did not specify a time period.

That compares with the 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles imposed by the government of former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in 2024, following similar U.S. penalties. In 2023, China exported 41,678 EVs to Canada.

"This is a return to levels prior to recent trade frictions, but under an agreement that promises much more for Canadians," Carney told reporters in Beijing.
...


https://www.reuters.com/world/china/canada-china-set-make-historic-gains-new-partnership-says-carney-2026-01-16/

[Winehole23]

the US big three automakers are burning their clothes to stay warm


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:xf53ujprnmfktaxb77fztor6/bafkreievfs77tj5aqvxcktwsmsgl2jypw3eoe7qtqmyea2hj5 3vj7megi4@jpeg

[velik_m]

How Trump is making China great again—and what it means for Europe

...
Donald Trump did not go into politics to make China great again. But that is what the latest poll of global public opinion from the European Council on Foreign Relations suggests he has done in the eyes of the world.

A year on from Trump’s return, in countries across the globe, many people believe China is on the verge of becoming even more powerful. Even before Trump’s dramatic intervention in Venezuela, his aggressive “America First” approach was driving people closer to China. Paradoxically, his disavowal of the liberal international order may have given people licence to build stronger links to Beijing, since they no longer feel the need to fall in line with a US-led alliance system. Meanwhile, “the West” seems to be a spent geopolitical force for the foreseeable future. America’s traditional enemies fear it less than they once did—while allies now worry about falling victim to a predatory US.

This splitting of the West is most visible in Europe, and in what others think of Europe. Russians now regard the EU as more of an enemy than they do the US; and Ukrainians look more to Brussels than to Washington for succour. Most Europeans no longer consider America a reliable ally, and they are keen to rearm. These are the main findings of a new poll of 25,949 respondents across 21 countries conducted in November 2025—one year after Trump’s triumphant victory in the last presidential election—for ECFR and Oxford University’s Europe in a Changing World research project, the fourth in a series of such global surveys. While the data predate Trump’s operation in Venezuela, many of the trends identified here seem to prefigure it, and one imagines they might even be reinforced by this intervention.

...

Not only do more people think China is on the rise geopolitically and leading in important industries, but few seem to fear this course of events. Only in Ukraine and in South Korea do majorities of people view China as either a rival or an adversary. Since last year, even more people see China specifically as an ally in both South Africa and Brazil. This turnaround is yet greater in India. Relations between New Delhi and Beijing have traditionally been rocky; despite this, nearly half of Indians see China as either an ally or a necessary partner.

...

The shifting sands of American power appear to be undermining people’s affinity with the US. A notable fall has taken place among EU citizens, only 16% of whom now consider the US an ally; a striking 20% see it as a rival or an enemy (a view that approaches 30% in some EU member states). This change may be down to Washington’s very public and at times brutal reappraisal of Europe, its politics and its culture (as exhibited last year in Vice-President J.D. Vance’s speech to the Munich Security Conference and the United States’ new National Security Strategy), rather than any real deterioration in American power. In most of the world, however, opinions about America are undergoing a gradual decline rather than collapse. Just as with views of China, countries that think of the US in chiefly negative terms (as either a rival or an adversary) are few and far between—only China and Russia fall into this category. What is particularly eye-catching, however, is the popularity of China among some key middle powers. In South Africa, over a third of people see China as an ally, while only a fifth say the same of the US; in Brazil, similar proportions of people (around a quarter) see China as an ally in the same way they do America.

...

The most dramatic change has taken place among Russians, who see Europe as an adversary they are in conflict with. As the Trump administration has bent over backwards to restore good relations with Vladimir Putin, Russians have become less hostile to Washington and increasingly blame Europe. Fewer people in Russia now consider the US an adversary; just 37%, down from 48% last year, and 64% two years ago. Importantly, it is worth underlining that Russians’ growing sympathy towards the US is not reciprocated in the American public. The prevailing view in America—and among Kamala Harris and Donald Trump voters alike—is that Russia remains an adversary.

The corollary to this is that Ukrainians, who once saw the US as their greatest ally, now look to Europe for protection.In Ukraine, nearly two-thirds of people expect their country’s relations with the EU to get stronger; only a third say the same about America. Two-thirds of Ukrainians also see US and EU policies on their country as different.

This is a particularly European moment for Ukrainians. Thirty-nine per cent of people in Ukraine consider the EU an ally. Strikingly, only 18% now think the same of the US. The perception of the US as an ally has eroded over the last year, falling from 27%, while that of the EU as an ally has consolidated, remaining relatively stable (35% last year).

...

In keeping with this, while 61% of people in China see the US as a threat, only 19% think the same of the EU. This does not appear to be because Chinese citizens do not take the EU seriously: China is one of the few places where people regard the EU as a great power. This may therefore be because they view the bloc as a partner—as another pole in a multipolar world no longer dominated by America. While people in China consider the US chiefly a rival (45%), they consider the EU mostly a partner (46%).

...

In contrast, Americans have not altered their views of the EU. And, whatever Trump might claim, his policies towards Europe and Russia do not represent a new American domestic consensus. The prevailing view in the US (40%) is to consider the EU an ally. Half of Americans (49%) subscribe to the view that “European security is also American security”; only 29% do not. And more than half (54%) of Americans consider Russia’s war in Ukraine a threat to American security.

Even more importantly, Republican and Democratic voters do not line up neatly behind positions against or in favour of the EU. If anything, Trump’s own electorate is internally divided over questions around Europe and Russia. But the transatlantic divide is even bigger, with only 25% of Britons and 16% of EU citizens now agreeing that the US is their ally.

...


https://ecfr.eu/publication/how-trump-is-making-china-great-again-and-what-it-means-for-europe/

[Winehole23]

Trump TACOs on invading Greenland



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:xdcvs42sgzwnbpjvlkkz6tkq/bafkreif6jmdcqr65vahnjcl755zmdiwzcuvkn2lonvq25dvrx fbr3srgxm@jpeg

[Winehole23]

“I will continue to raise taxes on Americans until the NATO alliance collapses”

:lol

[Winehole23]

Shashank Joshi of The Economist


Macron now refers to "intimidation or threat", explicitly comparing US behaviour in Greenland to Russia's approach to Ukraine. Sweden's PM says: "We will not allow ourselves to be blackmailed". Much, tougher language from Europeans than we have seen before, responding to the US escalation.

[Winehole23]

hilarious how his invasion bluff was called so he had to go to his emotional support tariff

[Winehole23]

lol

there goes the EU deal


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:uan3ql7k426h24lrcirjlmd3/bafkreicaldqvwtohtpjten2jgx7ifap3cvg6uvdrnwyq4kmix qscvc3qfe@jpeg

[velik_m]

EU and South American bloc Mercosur sign trade deal after 25 years of negotiations

Top officials from the EU and the South American bloc Mercosur signed a free trade agreement on Saturday in Paraguay, paving the way for the European Union’s largest-ever trade accord after 25 years of negotiations.

The agreement, designed to lower tariffs and boost trade between the two regions, must now gain the consent of the European Parliament and be ratified by the legislatures of Mercosur members Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.

...

Brazil’s government said in a statement that the deal is “emblematic of Lula’s efforts to expand and diversify markets,” adding that South America’s largest economy is also negotiating agreements with the United Arab Emirates, Canada and Vietnam, besides the expansion of a tariff‑preference pact with India.

Trade between the EU and Mercosur, which encompasses a market of 700 million people, reached a value of 111 billion euros in 2024. European Union exports mainly consist of machinery, chemical products, and transport equipment, whereas Mercosur’s exports are concentrated in agricultural goods, minerals, wood pulp, and paper.



https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/17/eu-south-america-mercosur-trade.html

[Winehole23]

"They are not deployed to city streets at this time, but are ready to help support public safety, including protection of life, preservation of property and supporting the rights of all who assemble peacefully"



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:dyqokrrzmg7glyjwozjy6ng4/bafkreidlmsnawawy6jkpd7gpjwymzu32fdkwlhckpnelqjjbt fmabfndn4@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://www.startribune.com/ice-raids-minnesota/601546426

[Winehole23]

long time forum lurkers may recall that last year the EU agreed to 15% across the board tariffs in exchange for no retaliation against the USA

Trump's Greenland tariffs are tending to undo that deal


EU list of US imports which could become subject to EU countermeasures, if ongoing EU-US negotiations don't result in a mutually beneficial outcome & the removal of the US tariffs.The list concerns imports from the US worth €95 billion.https://circabc.europa.eu/ui/group/e9d50ad8-e41f-4379-839a-fdfe08f0aa96/library/fd09c397-b621-4dcd-be36-1684eb37e3fb/details?download=true

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:jub6vadsfjtaieogcyomjnyv/bafkreibn43pu4medj7dm72dz2b6egcke4xjsopovop2ogpeer u72fmtfjy@jpeg

[Winehole23]

“.. foreign exporters absorbed only about 4% of the burden of last year’s U.S. tariff increases by lowering their prices, while American consumers and importers absorbed 96%.


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreifknlxfx3vrr5ofurhjgz4ch4waeacqw2gnixyxt7kxx 57p2wj54a@jpeghttps://www.wsj.com/economy/trade/americans-are-the-ones-paying-for-tariffs-study-finds-e254ed2e

[Winehole23]

“.. foreign exporters absorbed only about 4% of the burden of last year’s U.S. tariff increases by lowering their prices, while American consumers and importers absorbed 96%.


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreifknlxfx3vrr5ofurhjgz4ch4waeacqw2gnixyxt7kxx 57p2wj54a@jpeghttps://www.wsj.com/economy/trade/americans-are-the-ones-paying-for-tariffs-study-finds-e254ed2e

[Winehole23]

"Rather than acting as a tax on foreign producers, the tariffs functioned as a consumption tax on Americans, the report said...The $200 billion in additional US tariff revenue last year 'was paid almost exclusively by Americans,' Hinz said. That is likely to fuel higher US inflation over time..."

[Winehole23]

"No taxation without representation"

[Blake]

AMERICAN CONSUMERS ARE PAYING THE LION SHARE OF THE TARIFF COSTS?

NO WAY!!! TRUMP SAID THE COMPANIES WILL EAT THOSE COSTS OR ELSE!!!!

I HOPE HE PUNISHES THESE COMPANIES WITH EVEN MORE TARIFFS!!!

[Winehole23]

"keep raising taxes on Americans until foreigners say uncle"

[TSA]

AMERICAN CONSUMERS ARE PAYING THE LION SHARE OF THE TARIFF COSTS?

NO WAY!!! TRUMP SAID THE COMPANIES WILL EAT THOSE COSTS OR ELSE!!!!

I HOPE HE PUNISHES THESE COMPANIES WITH EVEN MORE TARIFFS!!!

https://x.com/truflation/status/2013962583271989747

:lol Blake Cramer :lol

[Winehole23]

TSA with no take

[Blake]

https://x.com/truflation/status/2013962583271989747

:lol Blake Cramer :lol

"President Donald Trump in recent days claimed progress in his administration's effort to tackle rising food prices. "Grocery prices are starting to go rapidly down," Trump told an audience at the Detroit Economic Club, without citing evidence.

Hours earlier, however, fresh government data refuted Trump's assertion, instead showing the largest monthly jump in food prices since 2022."

https://abcnews.go.com/Business/grocery-price-inflation-picking-defying-trumps-claims/story?id=129237545


Tsa just following his alt right Trump tard commands like a good bootlick

[Winehole23]

I have no intention of getting in the way of President Trump and his administration. He has used the tariff power that he has under Article II. He has not exceeded his authority. There is no reason for the Article I branch to intervene.



This is Article I (which describes Congress's power). The words imposts, excises, tariffs or any synonym for this do not appear in Article II


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:egd33s7iuqsmwlwab6mbtrqi/bafkreibmzw5o65enck3iyf5bcvat3vibtoxruf6es2kiff4uh u3rwmiuay@jpeghttps://bsky.app/profile/jonathanmladd.com/post/3mcxw7s5vk223

[Winehole23]

goods inflation

double-top coming?


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:rbffgd2zo6r7rmnklo2nlyy5/bafkreibshfjgdbvnk3zo65mzd2ftbyjdza4mwjljlpqu2t6z2 jjfrdim2e@jpeg

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:rbffgd2zo6r7rmnklo2nlyy5/bafkreidzd32vv7ii6cab7pofiy6tcbbjgskrdankc2ugxnpvj qrnbt2y5i@jpeg

[Winehole23]

I can't imagine why Canada thinks China is a more reliable partner

[Winehole23]

Trump to Canada: "You rely on us too much!"

Canada: "OK, we'll diversify."

Trump: "No, wait, not like that!"https://bsky.app/profile/sharonk.bsky.social/post/3md6igoqkhc2u

[velik_m]

Exclusive: German investments in US nearly halved in Trump's first year back, report shows

BERLIN, Jan 19 (Reuters) - German #companies nearly halved their investments in the United States in the first year of President Donald Trump's second term, citing trade uncertainty, according to a report by the German Economic Institute (IW) seen by Reuters on Monday.

From February to November 2025, German firms invested around 10.2 billion euros ($11.1 billion) in the U.S., down roughly 45% #from almost 19 billion euros in the same period a year earlier, the ​study showed, using data from the Bundesbank.

....


https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/german-investments-us-nearly-halve-trumps-first-year-back-report-shows-2026-01-19/

[Winehole23]

Trump's omnidirectional belligerence seems to be backfiring

[velik_m]

A China-Europe energy alliance could deliver a new world order

...

Trump’s national security strategy exhorts Europe to reward Vladimir Putin, and openly states the goal of “cultivating resistance to Europe’s current trajectory”.

Given that, it is no longer tolerable for Britain and Europe to maintain such heavy reliance on imports of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the US or from any country under Trump’s spell or subject to his coercive reach.

The imperative is to electrify even faster as an urgent matter of national security, and that is one way to read the British government’s £15bn plan announced this week for solar panels, heat pumps, and batteries.

Even before Trump lost all inhibitions, serious energy analysts were warning that the era of globally traded fossil fuels was under threat, because trade was no longer politically safe.

...

The energy think tank Ember says China accounted for two thirds of the entire increase in global fossil demand from 2012-2022. Today, it is the world’s largest combined importer of oil and LNG by far. It will not be tomorrow.

The other reason why China will never buy the oil and gas that Trump wants to sell – and exploit as leverage – is that it is moving with breakneck speed to ditch the legacy energy system of the 20th century, and entrench its commercial dominance over the more advanced electro-technologies of the 21st Century.

There is no need to rehearse the figures. Anybody who is paying attention knows by now that sales of combustion cars in the world’s largest car market have crashed to around 40pc on a rolling monthly basis, and will be close to irrelevant by the end of the decade. They know that trucks are following the same trajectory. Fossil use is already declining in Chinese manufacturing and buildings.

...

It takes a lot to throw these two foes together, but Trump may have pulled it off over the 10 days that shook the world, culminating in the Greenland disgrace.

China and Europe are reaching a modus vivendi of sorts over tariffs on electric vehicles. Chinese vice-premier He Lifeng was in Davos this week making sweet overtures to the Europeans and denouncing “the law of the jungle, where the strong bully the weak.”

Meanwhile, Trump’s hubristic cabinet was in nearby rooms acting like a pack of hyenas, dishing out insults, ridiculing all efforts to cut CO2 emissions and proclaiming the gospel of coal.

Trump’s advisers like to talk of a “reverse Nixon” where they bring Russia in from the cold and split the Sino-Russian axis.

They may soon find themselves the victim of a reverse triangulation with a twist as China outwits them, swooping into the Ukraine war to broker a peace deal and then detaching Europe from the defunct Atlantic alliance.

....



https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2026/01/23/china-europe-energy-alliance-deliver-new-world-orde/

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreidrbw3m2pcu253w4byn3rsbteznp3bvzn3oaehv3mr6u szpocdqwm@jpeg

[velik_m]

Volkswagen considers pulling out of US factory plans over tariffs

Volkswagen may pull its plans for a major Audi factory in the US, citing President Donald Trump’s automotive tariffs.

The car giant’s CEO told Handelsblatt that US levies cost VW $2.5 billion in the first nine months of 2025, and that reductions were necessary.

...



https://www.semafor.com/article/01/26/2026/volkswagen-considers-pulling-out-of-us-factory-plans-over-tariffs

[Winehole23]

The USA had a real deal, Senate-ratified free trade agreement that Trump ripped up

Now he wants to punish South Korea for not taking a worse deal


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:rbffgd2zo6r7rmnklo2nlyy5/bafkreicktm2wqymkcioro26tin7ygjf35vnpshwfsfy2cv6fq f67wxsgge@jpeg

[Winehole23]

if Trump TACOs 73% of the time, how can the tariffs be a national emergency?

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2026-01-27/trump-only-follows-through-about-73-of-the-time-on-tariffs

[velik_m]

Korean shipbuilder bidding for submarine contract agrees to $345M deal with Algoma Steel

A major shipbuilder from South Korea has signed a memorandum of understanding with Algoma Steel, which would see the Sault Ste. Marie steelmaker receive up to $345 million to develop a structural steel beam mill.

The agreement is contingent on South Korean businesses winning the contract to build a new fleet of submarines for the Canadian military.

Officials from Korea are headed to Canada this week in support of their bid, which is valued at more than $12 billion. It is competing with businesses from Germany.

Monday, Algoma Steel and Korea’s Hanwha Ocean announced they had entered into a binding MOU related to the “future submarine program with Canadian steelmaking capability and Canadian workers, supporting long-term naval readiness and industrial sovereignty.”

...


https://www.ctvnews.ca/northern-ontario/article/korean-shipbuilder-bidding-for-submarine-contract-agrees-to-345m-deal-with-algoma-steel/

[velik_m]

‘Mother of all deals’: EU and India sign free trade agreement

India and the EU have finalised a landmark free trade agreement, which the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, hailed as the “mother of all deals”.

The agreement comes after almost two decades of on-off negotiations between India and the EU, which vastly accelerated in the past six months and were finally concluded late on Monday night.

The deal is expected to open up India’s vast and traditionally tightly guarded market to the 27 nations in the bloc, with a focus on manufacturing and the services sector. It will ease market access for key European products, including cars and wine, in return for easier exports of textiles, gems and pharmaceuticals.

The agreement is expected to double EU exports to India by 2032 by eliminating or cutting tariffs in 96.6% of traded goods by value, and would lead to savings of €4bn (£3.5bn) in duties for European companies, the EU said.

Tariffs will be reduced to zero for a vast swathe of industrial products, including nearly all iron and steel, plastics, chemicals, machinery and pharmaceuticals.

“Europe and India are making history today,” von der Leyen said after landing in Delhi, where she met the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, on Tuesday. “We have concluded the mother of all deals. We have created a free trade zone of 2 billion people, with both sides set to benefit.”

...



https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/jan/27/eu-and-india-sign-free-trade-agreement?CMP%3Dshare_btn_url

[Winehole23]

Trump's omnidirectional tariff hostility givers the whole world incentive to do deals with one another and leave us increasingly behind the door

[velik_m]

Vietnam, EU elevate diplomatic ties as international order "is under threat"

HANOI, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Vietnam and the European Union said on Thursday they elevated diplomatic relations, as both sides seek to expand international partnerships amid global disruptions.

The largely diplomatic move entails no binding commitments but carries political weight at a time when the EU and Vietnam are seeking to deepen international ties as they both face up to higher levies on their exports to the United States.

The upgrade is "a historical milestone underlining the great achievements that the two sides have made," Vietnam's President Luong Cuong said at the start of a meeting in Hanoi with European Council President Antonio Costa.

A free trade agreement between Vietnam and the 27-country EU entered into force in 2020.

Costa, who arrived in Hanoi after the EU struck a major trade deal with India on Tuesday, said the upgraded partnership "highlights the importance we attach to the region and to Vietnam's growing role".
"At a moment when the international rules-based order is under threat from multiple sides, we need to start to stand side by side as reliable and predictable partners," Costa added.

...


https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/vietnam-hails-upgrade-diplomatic-ties-with-eu-historical-milestone-2026-01-29/

[Blake]

"...The US trade deficit ballooned to $56.8 billion in November 2025, crushing economists’ forecasts of $43.4 billion and nearly doubling from October’s revised $29.2 billion.

The magnitude of the surge in trade deficit signals intensifying import pressure as American consumers and businesses continue shopping abroad.

The shortfall marks the return of a structurally wider deficit after October’s anomalously narrow position.

It raises fresh questions about whether tariff-related front-loading is masking deeper import momentum heading into 2026...."

https://www.tradingview.com/news/invezz:837b1ead5094b:0-us-trade-deficit-widens-to-56-8-billion-far-exceeding-43-4b-forecast/

[Winehole23]

lol thumb on the scale

[Winehole23]

lying about the deficit

[velik_m]

Trade deficit soared 94% in November and was higher than a year ago, despite tariff efforts

The U.S. deficit with its global trading partners nearly doubled in November as the shortfall with the European Union swelled and the impact of President Donald Trump’s tariffs worked their way through the economy, the Census Bureau reported Thursday.

Following a month where the trade deficit hit its lowest level since early 2009, it shot up to $56.8 billion, an increase of 94.6% from October. Of that gain, about one-third came with the European Union, where the goods deficit rose by $8.2 billion. The goods deficit with China decreased by about $1 billion to $13.9 billion.

On a year-over-year basis, the deficit through November stood at $839.5 billion, or about 4% higher than the same period in 2024.
...



https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/29/trade-balance-soared-94percent-in-november-and-was-higher-than-a-year-ago-despite-tariff-efforts.html

[Blake]

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/29/trade-balance-soared-94percent-in-november-and-was-higher-than-a-year-ago-despite-tariff-efforts.html

Just so I get this straight... there's no dent in the trade deficit but we're paying more for stuff because three companies are passing the tariff costs down the consumers as predicted?

Can one of you Trump tards please mentally gymnasticize for me as to why you still support these tariffs?

[velik_m]

Just so I get this straight... there's no dent in the trade deficit but we're paying more for stuff because three companies are passing the tariff costs down the consumers as predicted?

Can one of you Trump tards please mentally gymnasticize for me as to why you still support these tariffs?

The more fun part is that to declare the tariffs, Trump claims trade deficits are a national emergency. So he managed to make a "national emergency" actually worse.

[ChumpDumper]

The obvious solution is more tariffs.

[velik_m]

Trump’s tariff war is crushing American alcohol makers

In recent weeks, new data has emerged from Canada showing the near-catastrophic consequences to American alcohol manufacturers from President Donald Trump's tariff wars. Yet despite clear signs that his tariff policies are backfiring, the president keeps doubling down.

Last year, in response to the administration's tariffs on goods from Canada, provincial liquor stores in Quebec and Ontario enacted a boycott on American wine and distilled spirits. Because the government operates the liquor stores in those provinces, it was relatively straightforward to simply pull all American-based alcohol from store shelves, essentially zeroing out Canadian alcohol sales for American producers.

Now, the data is starting to roll in concerning the impact of the boycott. Since 2024, there has been a jaw-dropping 91 percent decline in U.S. wine sales to Canada. In just October of last year, there was an 84 percent year-over-year drop in wine sales compared to the prior year and a 56 percent drop in distilled spirit sales. Prior to the boycott, Canada was one of the primary export markets for American wine.

...



https://reason.com/2026/01/31/trumps-tariff-war-is-crushing-american-alcohol-makers/

[velik_m]

Canada Nears $3 Billion Uranium Deal With India, May Be Inked In March

Canada and India are tantalizingly close to a 10-year multibillion dollar uranium supply deal that will likely be signed at a heads of state meeting in March, according to sources from both sides at the recently concluded India Energy Week, held in Goa, India, last week.

Canada is the world’s second-largest producer of uranium, accounting for 13% to 15% of global output, according to the International Energy Agency, while India is the world’s third-largest consumer of energy.

Given its burgeoning economy, India is on a quest for secure uranium supplies as it expands its nuclear power footprint tenfold to 100 gigawatts by 2047, and both sides are looking to partner on that front.

...


https://www.forbes.com/sites/gauravsharma/2026/02/01/canada-nears-3-billion-uranium-deal-with-india-may-be-inked-in-march/

[TSA]

Big deal: ISM Manufacturing just snapped back into expansion at 52.6. That's a +4.7-pt jump and the strongest reading since Aug 2022.

This doesn't look like a blip. New Orders (57.1) and Production (55.9) surged to 2-year highs, signaling a real demand rebound after 10 straight months of contraction.

Historically, ISM is one of the most predictive indicators for incumbent-party performance in presidential election years. As for midterm years, who's to say but a clean move back above 50 matters.

With GDP tracking north of 5%, this points to an economy re-accelerating, not rolling over.

Watch follow-through but this reads like a regime shift, not just a bounce.

https://x.com/QuantusInsights/status/2018366557324247354

Diving deeper into today's ISM surge: The jump to 52.6 isn’t a fluke. Companies are actually getting more orders and making more stuff. New orders surged to 57.1 (best since early 2022) and production jumped to 55.9. That’s signals real demand coming back, not just optimism.

This wasn’t driven by one niche industry either. Most major manufacturing sectors grew, from machinery to chemicals, which tells us the pickup is broad, not fragile.

Why now? Some firms are restocking early ahead of possible tariffs and continuing to bring production back home. Exports also improved, suggesting the global slowdown may be easing.

After a weak 2025, manufacturing is back in growth mode and that supports the case for a re-accelerating U.S. economy, not a late-cycle fade.

Overall, bullish tilt for US economy as re-acceleration strengthens.

https://x.com/QuantusInsights/status/2018370112642822453

https://x.com/Geiger_Capital/status/2018346016118829178

:lol muh experts

[TSA]

https://x.com/QuantusInsights/status/2018331326911299947

[velik_m]

Trump says U.S. and India reached trade deal, will lower tariffs immediately

The U.S. and India have reached a trade deal and will immediately move to lower tariffs on each other’s goods, President Donald Trump announced.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also agreed to buy American products “at a much higher level” as part of the agreement, Trump said in a Truth Social post on Monday following a call with the Indian leader.

Modi also committed to “stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela,” Trump said in the post.

...



https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/02/trump-india-trade-deal-tariffs.html

[ChumpDumper]

An expert:

Susan Spence, who chairs the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee, also noted that in addition to reordering after the holiday, "some buying appears to be to get ahead of expected price increases due to ongoing tariff issues."

[Blake]

An expert:

Susan Spence, who chairs the ISM Manufacturing Business Survey Committee, also noted that in addition to reordering after the holiday, "some buying appears to be to get ahead of expected price increases due to ongoing tariff issues."

Tsa confused if he should lol at that expert or not

[Winehole23]

https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3530x2354+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F48%2F66%2Fce105e4f45 8f9de311c95324a67b%2Fap26022401424210.jpg


The U.S. also promised to review its 50% taxes on Argentine steel and aluminum imports — a disappointment to manufacturers in Argentina who expected the trade agreement to eliminate the crippling tariff outright. The deal also shows the U.S. quadrupling the current amount of Argentine beef it imports at a lower tariff rate to 100,000 tons per year.https://www.npr.org/2026/02/06/nx-s1-5704104/argentina-us-trade-deal

[Winehole23]

https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/3530x2354+0+0/resize/1100/quality/50/format/jpeg/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F48%2F66%2Fce105e4f45 8f9de311c95324a67b%2Fap26022401424210.jpg


The U.S. also promised to review its 50% taxes on Argentine steel and aluminum imports — a disappointment to manufacturers in Argentina who expected the trade agreement to eliminate the crippling tariff outright. The deal also shows the U.S. quadrupling the current amount of Argentine beef it imports at a lower tariff rate to 100,000 tons per year.https://www.npr.org/2026/02/06/nx-s1-5704104/argentina-us-trade-deal

[velik_m]

Facing high Trump tariffs, Africa’s leading economy says it’s close to a new trade deal with China

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — China and South Africa signed a framework agreement for a new trade deal on Friday as Africa’s leading economy looks to other options following the high import tariffs imposed on it by the U.S. and its diplomatic fallout with the Trump administration.

South Africa’s Ministry of Trade and Industry said the agreement would start negotiations over a deal that would give some South African goods, such as fruit, duty-free access to the Chinese market. The ministry said it expected the trade deal to be finalized by the end of March.

In return, the trade ministry said China will get enhanced investment opportunities in South Africa, where its car sales have seen rapid growth.

The U.S. slapped 30% duties on some South African goods under U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs policy — one of the higher rates applied across the world. South Africa has said it is still negotiating with the U.S. for a better deal.
...



https://apnews.com/article/china-south-africa-trade-tariffs-trump-26d2b3798716a5c0d7661ad714843382

[Winehole23]

Fire, ready, aim


Michigan has lost 6,300 manufacturing jobs since Trump took office .. Canada was Michigan’s primary export market. Now its wheat exports are down 89 percent ..


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreibhqm7jdfqx5bfhuhwm7ybgbcznbzccjvgqil3rmbzow 36tijbo6y@jpeghttps://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/02/04/michigan-tariffs-trade-war-canada/

[Winehole23]

(Trump is nuking Michigan Republicans)

[Winehole23]

I think a lot of state level Republicans are starting to see the writing on the wall that Trump is electoral Kryptonite...but that realization might already be too late

[velik_m]

US Consumer Credit Rises Much more than Expected in December

Total US consumer credit rose by $24.05 billion in December 2025, following an upwardly revised $4.70 billion gain in November and way above market expectations of an $8 billion increase.

It is equivalent to an increase of about 5.7% at an annual rate.

Revolving credit increased by $13.85 billion in December, after decreasing $1.69 billion in November.

Nonrevolving credit, which includes auto and student loans, rose $10.20 billion in December, following a $6.38 billion gain in the previous month.



https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/consumer-credit/news/523974

[velik_m]

Taiwan says 40% shift of chip capacity to US is 'impossible'

...
On Tuesday, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the government needed to bring semiconductors to the U.S.

"You can't have all semiconductor manufacturing 80 miles from China," he said. "That's just illogical ... So we need to bring it back."

"When we leave office my goal, for this administration, is 40% market share in leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing."

Taiwan and the U.S. reached a deal last month to lower tariffs on the island's exports to 15% from 20% and for Taiwan to increase its investment in the country.

Cheng said that there would be no relocation of Taiwan's science parks, but Taiwan was willing to share its experience in building an industry cluster and help the U.S. develop a similar environment.

She also said she was confident that Taiwan's semiconductor capacity - including existing, under construction and planned projects across advanced manufacturing, advanced packaging and the broader supply chain - would far exceed its investment in the U.S. or any other country.
...



https://www.reuters.com/world/china/taiwan-says-40-shift-chip-capacity-us-is-impossible-2026-02-09/

[Blake]

https://tradingeconomics.com/united-states/consumer-credit/news/523974

That's how Christmas was paid for this past year by many families apparently.

[Blake]

".....President Donald Trump's tariffs cost the average American household $1,000 last year, according to new research from the nonpartisan Tax Foundation.

The cost is set to go even higher this year to $1,300 per household, assuming the existing tariffs stay in place, the research said...."

https://abcnews.go.com/Business/trumps-tariffs-cost-american-households-1000-year-research/story?id=130003484


BUT THE COMPANIES WILL EAT IT! TRUMP SAID SO!

[Winehole23]

Mike Johnson is losing control of his own caucus


House Republican leaders are on the brink of losing a key procedural vote today as Speaker Mike Johnson once again asks GOP moderates to give President Donald Trump a pass on tariffs.


Johnson’s leadership team added a provision to the rule being voted on this afternoon that would ban members from bringing up resolutions challenging Trump’s tariff regime. The ban would remain in place until August.


Johnson has done this multiple times during this Congress to protect Trump. But now, moderates have grown sick of it.


Reps. Don Bacon (R-Neb.) and Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) both told us they’re likely to vote no, breaking with Johnson and Trump.


“I made it clear that I’m not in favor of that,” said Kiley, who opposed (https://link.punchbowl.news/click/44023789.31212/aHR0cHM6Ly9wdW5jaGJvd2wubmV3cy9hcmNoaXZlLzkxNjI1LX BtLw/67ab62f8cf3c4c9a3f03e016B08d277e7) Johnson’s last extension of the blockade.


Bacon said tariffs aren’t good for the economy, manufacturing jobs or the agriculture industry.
“American consumers pay the tariffs and thus it is a big tax,” Bacon added. “I support giving these authorities back to Congress.”
https://punchbowl.news/article/house/johnson-tariff-rebellion/

[Blake]

Mike Johnson is losing control of his own caucus

https://punchbowl.news/article/house/johnson-tariff-rebellion/

Just words. I'm betting they all fall back in line to Trump's demands like usual.

[velik_m]

Europe’s $24 Trillion Breakup With Visa and Mastercard Has Begun

...
What’s happening? ECB President Christine Lagarde told Irish radio that Europe needs its own digital payment system “urgently,” warning that virtually all European card and mobile payments currently run through non-European infrastructure controlled by Visa, Mastercard, PayPal or Alipay. Days later, on 2 February, the European Payments Initiative (EPI) and the EuroPA Alliance signed a landmark agreement to build a pan-European interoperable payment network covering 130 million users across 13 countries. The system, built around the digital wallet Wero, aims to let Europeans pay and transfer money across borders without touching a single American network.

...



https://europeanbusinessmagazine.com/business/europes-24-trillion-breakup-with-visa-and-mastercard-has-begun/

[Winehole23]

wow

[ChumpDumper]

Mean girl emergency.

2021332712955535547

https://x.com/atrupar/status/2021332712955535547

[Winehole23]

tone policing

[ChumpDumper]

It is not an emergency.

2021418428444311650

https://x.com/PollTracker2024/status/2021418428444311650

[Blake]

I haven't looked, but I can already see the angry yell-spit from Trump while going off on these three through his social media rants.

[Winehole23]

Ford hit with $900 million in in tariff charges



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:jfex7pbe5p7nejruly6rnnhn/bafkreibnupzeqoaotadjf6okctiaht6h7ncx5sdhvftsxjv33 i3dtihu6u@jpeghttps://www.wsj.com/business/autos/ford-earnings-q4-2025-f-stock-25dc2378?mod=djemlogistics_h

[Winehole23]

Mike Johnson tried to force a rule prohibiting members from passing resolutions against Trump's IEEPA tariffs, it failed last night

Nonzero chance Congress will claw back its own taxation powers from Trump in 2026, maybe even before the midterms


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:dhvvqy2dcefrk35kudxclkyd/bafkreiewxvwp3kvhblgjzi3e47pxhchd2dyqg3dpsdrhbwkeu zlkvqxxwi@jpeg

[Blake]

Ironically, it's wealthier people who are paying most of the tariffs and yet liberals hate them.


American consumers and companies paid nearly 90% of the cost of President Donald Trump’s tariffs through late 2025, according to a new report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

The study adds to a growing body of evidence indicating American families pay a price for Trump’s import taxes, despite the president's assertion that the financial burden falls entirely on other countries...

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2026/02/15/americans-paid-trump-tariffs-2025-inflation/88692687007/

Why do you love billionaires doing whatever they want to you?

[velik_m]

Carney constructs a mega anti-Trump trade alliance

...
Ottawa is “championing efforts to build a bridge between the Trans-Pacific Partnership [CPTPP] and the European Union, which would create a new trading bloc of 1.5 billion people,” Carney told world leaders and the global business elite in Davos.

The middle powers are taking action. The EU and CPTPP are starting talks this year to strike an agreement to intertwine the supply chains of members like Canada, Singapore, Mexico, Japan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Australia with Europe.

It would bring nearly 40 nations on opposite sides of the globe closer together with the aim of reaching a deal on so-called rules of origin.

These rules determine the economic nationality of a product. A deal would allow manufacturers throughout the two blocs to trade goods and their parts more seamlessly in a low-tariff process known as cumulation.

Earlier this month, Carney dispatched his personal representative to the European Union, John Hannaford, to Singapore to solicit the views of regional leaders on the potential deal.
...




https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-and-indo-pacific-blocs-eye-major-new-trade-pact/

[Winehole23]

laying tariffs on our #1 trading partner and stirring political disunion in it seems to have some disadvantages

[velik_m]

Billionaire Trump Donor Closing U.S. Plant and Moving Work to China

One of President Trump’s oldest donors is closing a manufacturing plant in Ohio and moving it to China, a slap in the face to the American workers he claimed to be fighting for.

Hedge fund billionaire John Paulson plans to offshore the East Lake, Ohio, plant of Conn Selmer, the largest U.S. manufacturer of brass and orchestra instruments.

“We can’t have American producers closing American factories and offshoring. We need to protect American jobs and protect American manufacturing,” Paulson said just last year.
...



https://newrepublic.com/post/206603/trump-donor-closing-us-plant-moving-work-china

[Blake]

Trump tards fall for the billionaires' failed promises every time.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreidnbqs2i4rfsjaflkcdgna3wioesyhse7h7lxrooajk3 krdlkgrhi@jpeg

[Winehole23]

up-is-downism is a basic MAGA trope



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreid7w3zi3q7ryfjresmtt7lhohiqoeuot3gxv25leo7mn v4ldnmxce@jpeg

[Blake]

White House economic advisor Kevin Hassett said Wednesday that the authors of a recent New York Federal Reserve paper that found U.S. companies and consumers are shouldering most of the tariff burden should be "disciplined."

https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/18/hassett-says-authors-of-new-york-fed-tariff-study-should-be-disciplined-worst-paper-ive-ever-seen.html

Lol what does that even mean? Like a spanking?

[Winehole23]

SCOTUS blocks Trump's IEEPA tariffs 6-3


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7vj2towokzui3hgna5u5u46f/bafkreigmlvpd2g4yajoe3ksqczh6ucp245da6zruzph4lfcba hvmuo6ide@jpeg

https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/25pdf/24-1287_4gcj.pdf

[Winehole23]

the dissent


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:zu5ssx2m7vc3lktn5aps7u6v/bafkreiemlzebx3hrgagvkwpugci5scyv5ufrpmhr4rpgvorra wrdq3glzm@jpeg

[ChumpDumper]

This might actually improve the economy before the midterms if Trump stops murdering US citizens in the street.

[Winehole23]

This might actually improve the economy before the midterms if Trump stops murdering US citizens in the street.a war with Iran could easily make the economy much worse

[ChumpDumper]

Oh Trump will find a way to fail.

[Winehole23]

Oh Trump will find a way to fail.SCOTUS threw Trump a life preserver today and he's already making it worse

[CosmicCowboy]

a war with Iran could easily make the economy much worse

No shit.

Trump thinks he can be the regime change hero on this one.

This is an existential issue for Iran and if they feel threatened they will overreact. How to hurt the US?

They have thousands of missiles and drones some with a 2000 km range. they won't go after the carriers...they will go after every oil refinery and shipping port in the middle east and potentially block the Strait of Hormuz. Oil going to $130 overnight and $6 gas will kick Trump right in the nuts on "affordabiity" and it will be all his fault.

[CosmicCowboy]

a war with Iran could easily make the economy much worse

No shit.

Trump thinks he can be the regime change hero on this one.

This is an existential issue for Iran and if they feel threatened they will overreact. How to hurt the US?

They have thousands of missiles and drones some with a 2000 km range. they won't go after the carriers...they will go after every oil refinery and shipping port in the middle east and potentially block the Strait of Hormuz. Oil going to $130 overnight and $6 gas will kick Trump right in the nuts on "affordabiity" and it will be all his fault.

[ChumpDumper]

crofl

2024950390005871034

https://x.com/natashakorecki/status/2024950390005871034

[Winehole23]

yesterday: SCOTUS told Trump his Liberation Day tariffs were illegal taxation and beyond the scope of his office

today: Trump announces a new round of global import taxes

Trump is very determined to lay large new taxes on Americans

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7a6eqoyhbtmkhqphfesjybq3/bafkreibwymcltrzov5zkgcnskog6gh62f4eaxphmxyhijwsaj asqughw7q@jpeg

[Blake]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:7a6eqoyhbtmkhqphfesjybq3/bafkreibwymcltrzov5zkgcnskog6gh62f4eaxphmxyhijwsaj asqughw7q@jpeg

"Poorly written" he said in the middle of his long winded run on sentence.

[Blake]

... which was poorly written

[Winehole23]

Trump already hiked the Section 122 tariffs from 10% to 15%



https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:gftip5r3dmyojn5lat333pp5/bafkreidtncszlbzkok2iesxbsvredx3r6bdvn2ozr3p5zk2gp 4t4vvjkqi@jpeg

[Winehole23]

2024915268854563311

[velik_m]

India delays Washington trade visit as U.S. tariff policy shifts, source tells CNBC

India’s trade negotiators will reschedule their planned visit to Washington, D.C., aimed at firming up an interim trade deal with the U.S., a person familiar with the development told CNBC.

The development comes after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs as illegal on Friday. Within hours, Trump invoked Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974 to first impose a 10% global import tariff, before increasing that to 15%.

The “meeting will be rescheduled at a mutually convenient date,” the source told CNBC Sunday. India and the U.S. are of the view that the visit “be scheduled after each side has had the time to evaluate the latest developments and their implications.”
...



https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/22/trump-tariffs-india-trade-deal.html

[Winehole23]

Trump isn't agreement capable, that will be the background assumption about the USA going forward

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:3nekuksdc3y37mr7q66aaq4d/bafkreihqxdfpxmtpjrshs7s6ifh362tsgmiybgkmds4egfnja cjiokhc3u@jpeg

[Blake]

Trump isn't agreement capable, that will be the background assumption about the USA going forward

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:3nekuksdc3y37mr7q66aaq4d/bafkreihqxdfpxmtpjrshs7s6ifh362tsgmiybgkmds4egfnja cjiokhc3u@jpeg

Yup they should have waited for the SC decision or for Trump to just fold up in TACO mode.

[Blake]

Trump isn't agreement capable, that will be the background assumption about the USA going forward

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:3nekuksdc3y37mr7q66aaq4d/bafkreihqxdfpxmtpjrshs7s6ifh362tsgmiybgkmds4egfnja cjiokhc3u@jpeg

Yup they should have waited for the SC decision or for Trump to just fold up in TACO mode.

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:4llrhdclvdlmmynkwsmg5tdc/bafkreih5nekdiqndutrp64vt4nns6bqvh45faqcj2tw3ppqtj lkkv2kzde@jpeg

[Winehole23]

Donald Trump taxed Americans illegally for 10 months

The import firms will be refunded -- with our money, but we will not

Trump's reaction to having IEEPA tariffs blocked?

A new round of pretextual, presidentially laid taxes that'll get passed on to us.

[Winehole23]

Trump's new tariffs will expire in 150 days

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreidx2ez5q2ji3p3rs7nql7ofqcq4rcebmsr3lslrcf3nd dxox3eosy@jpeg

[Winehole23]

FedEx will get a refund, you won't

Even though you paid a big portion of the cost of Trump's illegal tax


Global transportation company FedEx, opens new tab (https://www.reuters.com/markets/companies/FDX.N) on Monday filed a lawsuit in the U.S. Court of International Trade seeking a refund for President Donald Trump's emergency tariffs, which the U.S. Supreme Court deemed illegal last week.


"Plaintiffs seek for themselves a full refund from Defendants of all IEEPA duties Plaintiffs have paid to the United States," FedEx said in the lawsuit, referring to tariffs Trump imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
https://www.reuters.com/world/fedex-sues-us-refund-trumps-emergency-tariffs-2026-02-23/

[Winehole23]

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:u27cygy2ortpq65lvdxe5rlc/bafkreieabyda3gwfzuxzofvtyiimx3qbdiemttefwe6g2meou t45c53l7u@jpeg

[Winehole23]

did Trump TACO on the 15% tariff rate, or did his subs overrule him?


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreidywe7ayusanmzof2ljgyhqqv64hfkdylijvc7e4sqwu nnmyw5x2q@jpeg

[Winehole23]

tl:dr

Trump's Section 122 tariffs are very likely illegal too, because no objective determination was made whether a balance of payments emergency exists

yet again, Trump uses pretext to grab power


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:xqzu2eazvxb5fohoc4nap33y/bafkreieb4easb45d5t22e6l7o36maoniwts62h763wedkdquv n3qzjeire@jpeghttps://ielp.worldtradelaw.net/2026/02/guest-post-are-president-trumps-new-section-122-tariffs-legal/

[Blake]

Donald Trump taxed Americans illegally for 10 months

The import firms will be refunded -- with our money, but we will not

Trump's reaction to having IEEPA tariffs blocked?

A new round of pretextual, presidentially laid taxes that'll get passed on to us.

His reaction was also to get extra pissy about the Supreme Court making America worse and China better because something something ramble ramble anchor baby ramble civil war black people something

[Winehole23]

being a prevaricating bully with poor impulse control is Trump's main strength and also a primary weakness

[Winehole23]

price of poker went down for Brazil, Canada and Mexico under Trump's new illegal taxation scheme


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:gftip5r3dmyojn5lat333pp5/bafkreihahnz5r2kitl2bzotoh6uogvownxqsq5sutk33llkrg wwkg4zhdm@jpeg

[velik_m]

Core wholesale prices rose 0.8% in January, much more than expected

Wholesale prices rose at a faster-than-expected pace in January, countering hopes that inflation was easing, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

The core producer price index, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, increased a seasonally adjusted 0.8%, more than the 0.6% gain in December and well ahead of the Dow Jones consensus estimate for 0.3%.

On an all-items basis, the headline PPI rose 0.5%, also above the forecast for 0.3% and 0.1 percentage point more than the prior month.

For the full year, core wholesale prices accelerated 3.6%, while the headline index posted a 2.9% gain. Both figures are well ahead of the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation goal and suggest that rising prices are still a factor for the U.S. economy.
...



https://www.cnbc.com/2026/02/27/ppi-january-2026-.html

[Winehole23]

if you raise taxes on wholesalers, the cost will be passed on to consumers

[velik_m]

China suspends some agricultural tariffs on Canada after Carney visit

...
Ottawa expected Beijing to lower canola seed tariffs to a combined rate of about 15% from the current 84%. A probe into Canadian canola is set to conclude on March 9, the Chinese commerce ministry has said.

"One thing we do know is that Chinese buyers have been booking Canadian canola cargoes for March already. That gives me a pretty high degree of confidence that they're going to follow through on the reduced tariff rate," said Even Rogers Pay, director at Beijing-based consultancy Trivium China.

Canola oil and pork were also not mentioned in the statement. But Beijing could still announce further adjustments by the March 1 deadline previewed by Carney.
China was Canada's second largest market for canola in 2024.

The suspensions come amid a wave of visits to Beijing by Western leaders as U.S. President Donald Trump's trade policies have strained Washington's traditional alliances. China has sought to present itself as a more stable and reliable economic partner in contrast.

...


https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/china-suspends-some-agricultural-tariffs-canada-after-carney-visit-2026-02-27/



Energy-hungry India tells Carney 'we are willing to buy whatever Canada is offering'

India wants to buy any energy product it can from Canada and its officials are urging the federal government to streamline approvals for various projects so it can tap into new supplies to feed a rapidly growing country with relatively few natural resources of its own.

That's the message India's high commissioner to Canada, Dinesh Patnaik, relayed in an interview with CBC News before Prime Minister Mark Carney left for a five-day visit to the country. It's a trip that will be laser-focused on cutting new business deals and getting negotiations for a free trade agreement underway as part of a push to diversify from the American market.

"On energy, there is an appetite which even Canada cannot fulfill and we are willing to buy whatever Canada is offering on crude, on LPG, on LNG," Patnaik said, referring to oil and gas products.

Patnaik said turbocharging the trading relationship will help the two countries turn the page on years of bilateral bad blood.

...


https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/india-carney-energy-oil-9.7106572

[Winehole23]

Court of International Trade issues a universal injunction, Trump may have trouble delaying the refunds



If I'm reading this correctly, the CIT judge in this post-Learning Resources claim for a tariff refund just purported to issue universal relief on the ground that he's the only judge who'd adjudicate such claims, ... [1].https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.cit.19346/gov.uscourts.cit.19346.21.0_2.pdf

https://bsky.app/profile/martylederman.bsky.social/post/3mgbhlbez222g

[Winehole23]

Stepping back from the more legal issues, I would note that the Trump Administration can easily resolve the refund issue simply by giving up this legal fight and issuing refunds to all those forced to pay the illegal tariffs. That would not be hard to do. The government has a record of all the payments and who made them. Calculating interest also is not difficult. The government could just make electronic payments or send checks to all those entitled to them.


Ultimately, the government illegally seized billions of dollars and therefore must pay them back. If I unjustly and illegally take your property, I have a duty to give it back, and pay interest. The same principle applies when the federal government does it. You don't have to be a legal theorist or a tariff expert to grasp this simple point.
https://reason.com/volokh/2026/03/04/us-court-of-international-trade-orders-refund-of-all-illegally-collected-ieepa-tariffs/

[Winehole23]

time to start throwing these assholes in jail



- The ​U.S. Customs and #Border Protection agency is ​unable to ​comply with a court ⁠order ​directing it to ​refund tariffs that the Supreme Court has ​ruled ​illegal, the agency said in a #court ⁠filing with the U.S. Court for ​International ​Trade ⁠on Friday.https://www.reuters.com/business/us-customs-agency-says-it-cannot-comply-with-tariff-refund-order-2026-03-06/

[Winehole23]

"no taxation without representation"

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:mlan7kocyn37uzb25btjt2cc/bafkreifwjzeubmt7sahhdcbyga4e4hccvpbzqel454uzw6os6 2rvvoaxri
https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:mlan7kocyn37uzb25btjt2cc/bafkreif7sigxf3gzj7bjbwmm7yeo2cpjakt5cuncpizqxhyww jnkcwojd4

[Winehole23]

G-7 members exclude the USA from their proposed critical minerals deal


Group of Seven members Japan (https://www.reuters.com/world/japan/), France (https://www.reuters.com/world/france/) and Canada (https://www.reuters.com/world/canada/) are working on alternatives to a U.S.-led ​trade bloc to secure critical minerals and reduce reliance on China (https://www.reuters.com/world/china/), according to three senior officials from these countries.


Some #options include import quotas on certain rare earths, subsidies for mining companies to diversify the supply chain on critical minerals, and a buyers' club,a Canada-led G7 initiative that aims to develop a reliable supply chain of critical minerals outside of China and break that country's monopoly on these metals.
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/japan-france-canada-work-alternatives-us-led-trade-bloc-rare-earth-supplies-2026-03-06/

[CosmicCowboy]

No shit.

Trump thinks he can be the regime change hero on this one.

This is an existential issue for Iran and if they feel threatened they will overreact. How to hurt the US?

They have thousands of missiles and drones some with a 2000 km range. they won't go after the carriers...they will go after every oil refinery and shipping port in the middle east and potentially block the Strait of Hormuz. Oil going to $130 overnight and $6 gas will kick Trump right in the nuts on "affordabiity" and it will be all his fault.

Called that shit when it started. Oil hit $105 this morning and the stock market taking a dump pretty much world wide. It will only get worse. Iran has more drones than we have stuff to stop them. Saudi Arabia has to cut back production becaue they are out of storage. once you start shutting wells down its not like you can flip a switch and start production again.

[Winehole23]

oil supply shocks historically correlate with inflation

https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:gftip5r3dmyojn5lat333pp5/bafkreigusmhjik7puogpzew3enag7ygb5kxb2abjkqslgmycz qipdktfya

[velik_m]

At last, reasons to be cheerful about European tech
One of which is Donald Trump

...

Meanwhile, Mr Trump’s disdain for foreigners, and recent lay-offs by American tech giants, are driving talent to Europe. People working in Europe for American firms have also formed a talent reservoir. Data from Revelio Labs, a workplace-data firm, show the brain drain has reversed (see chart 3). Lovable, for one, has recruited executives from American software companies. What is more, fewer European firms are being sold to America. Dealogic, a data provider, notes that in 2011-13 American firms made 12% of acquisitions of European tech firms by number and 35% by value. In 2023-25 the shares were 9% and 17%.

...

Even before he started his second term last year, Europe’s climate-technology sector was catching up with America’s. In 2015-16 VC spending on Europe’s green startups was 24% of America’s. By 2024-25 that ratio grew to 55%. Mr Trump’s gutting of American environmental regulation will surely encourage the trend. Last year the number of American climate-tech startups raising VC funds was the lowest since 2019.

There is no sign of demoralisation among European green-tech firms. In December Octopus Energy, a British provider of green power, spun off Kraken, which sells smart-grid software, at an estimated valuation of $9bn. Sweden is a hotspot for green-tech startups. Stegra aims to make carbon-free steel there. Einride is electrifying freight transport. In Switzerland Climeworks builds machines that suck carbon dioxide from the air.

Mr Trump’s demand that Europe do more to defend itself is also spurring high-tech arms-making in a region that had little of it. In 2015-17 VC investment in European defence tech was barely 1% of North America’s. By 2023-25 that had risen to 6%. The International Institute for Strategic Studies, a think-tank, says that Europe’s defence spending rose by 42% from 2023 to 2025; America’s defence budget, though far bigger, was unchanged. Whereas established contractors account for much of American defence spending, Europe offers more scope for young defence-tech firms.

...



https://www.economist.com/business/2026/03/01/at-last-reasons-to-be-cheerful-about-european-tech

[Winehole23]

The United States now has fewer manufacturing jobs today (12.573M) than it did in March 2018 (12.576M) when Trump first started his tariff wars


https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:z6rujpf4u56jfie7aqic2nfg/bafkreihupdabfclntuilil5rxrojxbgya6jtybkdokso2jxki myujtqpcy@jpeg- @scottlincicome.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/did:plc:jfex7pbe5p7nejruly6rnnhn)

www.bls.gov/charts/emplo... (https://www.bls.gov/charts/employment-situation/employment-levels-by-industry.htm)