Really? So it had nothing to do with the fact that 65% of imported Chinese tires are actually brought to the US under those brand names? Let's be honest, Goodyear and others outsources low end tires from China to cut costs and produce expensive and more profitable tires themselves. Have been doing so for years. In years of recession and of course, the general tendency of people to favour inexpensive goods leads to the increase in Chinese market share. There really is nothing more to it. The other thing I wanted to say is Obama's sh1tty timing. Let's be honest in that regard too. For the past 20 to 30 years, American politicians have used China as a political punching bag in the economic front. Tariffs leveraged on China are nothing new and China usually responded with a (I've heard it called) formulaic response. Had Obama picked a better time, such as not in a worldwide recession, hint hint, that was what likely to have happened this time as well. But the CCP is facing growing pressure back home and had to respond. American presidents should have known that they have pushed their luck for years, and after Obama's sh1tty timing (and forcing them into a corner), he's surprised they are pushing back. Brilliant. I've read up on some of China's potential WTO complaints. They have some merit, which of course isn't good for either country. Did I mention Obama's sh1tty timing?
This incident, to quote a Cantonese proverbial saying, is nothing but a "soaked firecracker". It's not gonna explode nor make any noise.
What would that have to do with their stock jumping upon the announcement of tariffs? If the tariffs are within the legal confines of the WTO, what's the problem? There's nothing that says all countries must have 100% free trade. The point is to eliminate excessive tariffs and trade barriers. Both countries already have a number of trade tariffs on various goods and products. As we saw from the overall market response, after a few hours of concern, everyone decided it was a non-story and moved on. Why? If they have merit, then what's the problem? All countries protect the industries that need protecting as they move towards more and more free trade. The idea that the US shouldn't ever impose any tariffs for any reason, despite the fact that every country does, is nonsense.
I think all trade restrictions should be approved by WTO. Countries shouldn't be able to conduct their own "investigation" and impose trade restrictions unilaterally. If they can do that, then what is the point of WTO???
I don't think any country would give away absolute control of all tariff powers willingly. It is perhaps a compromise between the ideal and what is possible in the real world. The WTO does have final say in arbitration, which is a pretty big power for all these countries to secede, and the WTO does actually arbitrate quite a bit, so it uses the power that it has. I think perhaps if you compare it with similar organizations – the UN being the main one I’m thinking of – it operates with a relatively large amount of independent power over its members.
If this body is not capable of action, I suggest new leadership is needed. I move for a Vote of No Confidence in Chancellor Valorum's leadership.
Free trade only works if all the participating nations respect human rights, labor laws, safety regulations, and environmental considerations, which is not the case. As it exist today, free trade is nothing more than corporate welfare.
This will all end with the Chinese playing Sir Larry Wildman and telling their American counterparts "[we] could dump the [dollar] just to burn your ass"
