“U.S. Farmer Income Drops Most Since 2016 as Trade War Losses Mount”

May 1, 2019 by Robert Huntington | Leave a comment

I don’t understand. Trade wars are easy to win and we’re supposed to be tired of winning by now.

Bloomberg: “The report provided fresh evidence of the growing financial strain on U.S. farmers hit by the trade war, low commodity prices and a series of natural disasters including spring floods in the Midwest. With rural voters a key part of Trump’s electoral coalition, it also underscores the political pressure to conclude the China trade war as U.S. negotiators begin another round of talks in Beijing this week.”

International trade 101

March 5, 2019March 5, 2019 by Robert Huntington | 1 Comment

Paul Krugman of the New York Times summarizes the findings of a group of economists from Columbia, Princeton, and the Federal Reserve: “The conclusion: to a first approximation, foreigners paid none of the bill, U.S. companies and consumers paid all of it. And the losses to U.S. consumers exceeded the revenue from the new tariffs, so the tariffs made America poorer overall. …

“Putting it all together, the Trump tariffs have raised consumer prices, rather than depressing foreign earnings. Some revenue has been gained, but there has also been what amounts to tax avoidance as consumers turn to other, untaxed sources of what we used to import. But this tax avoidance itself comes at a cost, so the U.S. as a whole is left poorer.”

nytimes.com

www.nytimes.com

Remember that trade wars are easy to win

January 2, 2019 by Robert Huntington | 1 Comment

“In January and February it’s the bankers who will largely decide farmers’ fates. Most farms have to borrow operating cash for each coming year to buy things like fuel, seeds and chemical fertilizer.

“Right now, it’s a question of what to plant to make those costs back. Not much in dryland is making money right now. Prices are at or below cost of production in this area for wheat, barley, rapeseed, lentils, garbs and peas.”

Chickpeas Sit In Silos As Trump's Trade Wars Wage On

The largest importers of crops like lentils, garbanzos or peas ? China and India ? aren't buying because of trade wars and tariffs. But farmers already planted in anticipation of sales.