Trade Wars

Discussion in 'Markets & Economies' started by JulieW, Mar 23, 2018.

  1. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    Just to reiterate:

    1. the end goal of production IS consumption. There’s no shoulds, it’s why businesses go into business in the first place, to profit from demand for consumption, not to create jobs. If governments attempt to ambush the business cycle they do so for political goals, not productive.

    2. individuals satisfy their subjectively-oriented needs and desires in the manner in which they best see fit, not necessarily in the most logical manner. Value is subjective.

    And whether or not humans act illogically or not has no bearing upon the valid implementation of sound economic theory. Unless you’re a central planner of course. And a curse on them. :)
     
  2. Ipv6Ready

    Ipv6Ready Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    This trade future war is ultimately good.
    China will focus more on consumerism resulting in higher prices
    USA will focus more in self sufficiency resulting in higher prices

    Something to contemplate
    Number 1 country USA has a trade deficit with is China.
    Number 2 country USA has a trade deficit with Germany, Germany has a trade surplus with China
    Number 3 country USA has a trade deficit with Japan, Japan has a trade Surplus with China
    Number X country USA has a trade deficit with South Korea, South Korea has a trade surplus with China

    How far do you need to go down the list until USA have a trade surplus.... google it, and you would think USA was a thirdworld country,
     
  3. Jim4silver

    Jim4silver Well-Known Member

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    Exactly right, thanks to the $hitty past presidents we've had who have sold us out. If Trump had lost we would be heading to 3rd world status at light speed. We might still get there if the leftists have their way, but at least we won't be bending over while it happens.
     
  4. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    Trade deficits and trade surpluses are immaterial to the creation of wealth. Do yourselves a favour and spend some time educating yourselves.

    Actually I should rephrase that, trade deficits are good. Trade surpluses are bad.
     
    Last edited: Apr 10, 2018
  5. Jim4silver

    Jim4silver Well-Known Member

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    You are only looking at this from one perspective.

    I'll use NAFTA as an example. I saw first-hand how jobs left and plants/factories shut down - as they went to Mexico for cheap labor and less regulation. Workers with multiple generations having worked at these plants and factories suddenly out of jobs that never came back.

    It happened across many types of industries over the years and the change was not for the better for many localities, many which are a shell today compared to what they were back then. I almost had to move to Mexico as a kid because my dad worked for one such company and they wanted him to go there as part of the management team when it launched. He turned it down. I was glad.

    Yes NAFTA has been great to some US companies over the years, but not for Americans in general. Over time many US towns have turned to $hit holes due to the aftermath of NAFTA. Detroit is one example. There are others.

    I disagree that a completely "free" market is best, because there is no such thing that exists. If there ever could be completely "free trade", that's one thing. But what they call "free trade" today usually means the US gets forked.
     
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  6. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    The purpose of trade is not about making money., money is just a tool for exchange. The purpose of trade is to exchange the stuff we don't want for the stuff we do want. If we get more stuff from others than we have to give them then that is a good thing because we don't need to make/grow/dig up as many things as the person with whom we are trading. If we get more stuff from others than we produce we get to have more things without having to produce as much for it.

    Here are two pictures to illustrate the point. The first picture is of a child from a family that has a trade surplus ie his family has no excess to trade with others because most of the needs that they are capable of meeting are met by the goods that they produce. In this case scavenging through rubbish. This family imports less into their lives than they produce, or if I can put it another way, they buy less things than they make.

    poverty-in-africa.jpg

    The second image is of a family that has a trade deficit. The bulk of its needs are met by trading the stuff they make which in most cases for families is money, for TV sets, car, houses, clean clothing, electricity, sewerage, medicines, holidays, toys etc that are made by others. They import more into their lives than they produce, they buy more things than they make.

    20140722-nonton-bareng-di-rumah-jusuf-kalla.jpg

     
  7. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    Your observations are not backed up by facts.

    As the US imported more goods into the country, it's employment rate increased.

    Source: https://www.cato.org/publications/c...america-increasing-jobs-through-exports-trade

    Screen Shot 2018-04-11 at 8.00.56 am.png
     
  8. alor

    alor Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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  9. tolly_67

    tolly_67 Well-Known Member

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    Well mmm....shiney, as for the second photo, that is an Indonesian family. A photo of the parents sits above the television and the father is actually sitting directly in front of the television although you can't see his head (although he is 'head' of the family as he has the best seat). On the adjacent wall is a religious picture. It is written in Arabic and has the title of the 114 chapters in the Quran written on it. It appears to be just after 3 in the afternoon so it is probably a Sunday due to the fact that the older children are at home. The two women on the right side of the couch are visiting as they are wearing loose hijabs and have handbags. The woman on the left resides in the house.
     
  10. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    Thanks for the background info. Rather interesting, the Islamic equivalent of feng shui?
     
  11. tolly_67

    tolly_67 Well-Known Member

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    Hey, if this was in Malaysia you would see karaoke playing on the t.v. and there would be someone holding a microphone.
     
  12. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    Had a few drinks in a bar in Malacca when we were there. The musician was some middle-aged fat Malay singing Adele. :eek:
     
  13. tolly_67

    tolly_67 Well-Known Member

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    We stayed in the Hotel Equatorial on the edge of the old town in Melaka. Great place, great food.
     
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  14. tolly_67

    tolly_67 Well-Known Member

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    Now this is a topic I like.....holidays.......I like to go on holidays so I can forget about all the nonsense happening in the world. It is nice not to look at stock market index's and gold price movements for a few weeks.
     
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  15. mmm....shiney!

    mmm....shiney! Administrator Staff Member Silver Stacker

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    I should do a travel guide, or a map, "Interesting places to buy cold beer in Malaysia". Save a lot of heartache, foot slogging and dry mouths.

    Tip 1: if you're visiting Taman Negara NP and staying in Kuala Tahan, take a longboat across the river to the resort. Cold beer and monkeys in the trees. And if after a week of nasi lemak or stingray you're craving a steak, they sell Aussie t-bones.
     
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  16. alor

    alor Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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  17. tolly_67

    tolly_67 Well-Known Member

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    I'll be in Singapore in about 33 hours from now. We are staying a few weeks so I will be across in Johor Bahru a few times hopefully. Normally we go across for satay or seafood banquet.
     
  18. toorak13

    toorak13 Member

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    why does the US care about their deficiti or not. they print some PAPER money and gets the "GOODS"
     
  19. alor

    alor Well-Known Member Silver Stacker

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    they should be dead worried, the money they printed can buy nothing
    many nations hold trillions, but only good for second hand weapons
    it can not be used to purchase strategic assets or anything that is not allowed to be bought
    its just paper, Iran has stop using
    may be holding their paper can get the holders heads cut off, eg Saddam Hussein and Qaddafi
    just like witchcraft, anyone holding green talisman are to be terminated
     
  20. toorak13

    toorak13 Member

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    Saddam Hussein and Qaddafi got killed because they REFUSE TO take PAPER isn't it ?
     

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