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China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

nytimes.com

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Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#341

Post by dogma1138 »

jayalpha wrote: post #303
dogma1138 wrote: post #290

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All “foreign” products even those which are manufactured in China have a foreign goods tax of 25% some have additional taxes beyond that. China doesn’t want foreign companies selling cheap goods in China so essentially everything needs to be imported even if it’s manufactured down the street from you in China.

"China doesn’t want foreign companies selling cheap goods in China so essentially everything needs to be imported even if it’s manufactured down the street from you in China." It is possible to buy good products cheap. But there you need to be smart, smarter than I am, and have contacts. A sub contractor might sell excess product under the table for cheap if you know where to find it (I don't). chinalawblog.com had a…

>It is possible to buy good products cheap. But there you need to be smart, smarter than I am, and have contacts. A sub contractor might sell excess product under the table for cheap if you know where to find it (I don't).

It's possible to buy illegal goods cheaply everywhere but that's just it it's a grey/black market goods since they are dodging the taxation imposed on the by the Chinese government.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#342

Post by cuboidGoat »

learc83 wrote: post #265
cuboidGoat wrote: post #246

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The same is also true of the USA.

92% of the US speaks English proficiently and 80% primarily. Cultural differences across the US are miniscule compared to the differences between EU countries. Turn on a TV in NYC and in North Dakota, the vast majority of the content is exactly the same. The only differences are local news and advertising for local businesses. Turn on a TV in France and Poland for comparison.

>Cultural differences across the US are miniscule compared to the differences between EU countries.

Linguistically and culturally, the US has massive differences within it. And the fact that the media landscape does not reflect the breadth of cultures within the USA, has been a point of contention for a very long time.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#343

Post by speedplane »

simonh wrote: post #308
jayalpha wrote: post #276

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't understand your argument. And if they Chinese tax US cars with 25% and the US taxes them with 2.5% (or was it 5%)? then it is reasonable to request equal tariffs.

Of course it is reasonable, so do that. Pursue them through the WTO or talk to your allies about reforming the WTO if it isn't working to your satisfaction, or scrap the WTO and build something better. If you believe in a global free trade system then build one. The US isn't doing any of that. I have little to no sympathy for China, but I do believe in equitable free trade based on consensus, a common rulebook and in…

Trump and many of his predecessors have gone through the WTO and have very little to show for it. It takes years for any decision and by the time you get the result it’s far too late (see solar panels). Why should any country submit itself to a proven broken system?

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#344

Post by justaguyhere »

gonvaled wrote: post #74

Extremely one sided comments, with a US centric view. The world is not the US, and HN readers are not only US citizens, so let me express a different point of view. Assumption: Trump wants fair trade. HN readers want fair trade. What is needed: fair trading rules, fair IP rules, fair capital structures, and a fair currency. Tackling some of the unfair trade practices does not address all those issues. In particular i…

Even if US demands are fair, going around insulting other countries and imposing tariffs isn't exactly a nice way of addressing the issue.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#345

Post by ksec »

I don't mind this trade wars to continue, after all there will always be dispute between two largest nation.

What I am worried is that this may turn into an actual war. And from what I can tell, China is not ruling out this possibility, it may not happen within next 2 - 3 years, but they are investing heavily into their military.

And if you look into the reporting from US media and Chinese media, they are both extremely one sided. ( But I guess that is... how it suppose to work ? ) Most US citizen do not realise how the USD works, and how currency works today. Most Chinese do not realise how closed their market are and their nation's unfair tactics. If tension continues.....

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#346

Post by v_lisivka »

chii wrote: post #317
sonnyblarney wrote: post #307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It doesn't matter what's on the paper. What matters is what they do. If they don't respect IP, we shouldn't respect theirs. If they respect ours, we respect theirs.

And so an eye for an eye leaves the world blind.

So last one, with just one eye, will be the king.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#347

Post by enitihas »

ksec wrote: post #345

I don't mind this trade wars to continue, after all there will always be dispute between two largest nation. What I am worried is that this may turn into an actual war. And from what I can tell, China is not ruling out this possibility, it may not happen within next 2 - 3 years, but they are investing heavily into their military. And if you look into the reporting from US media and Chinese media, they are both extrem…

Well this certainly looks to set start another cold war. The US was not going be the only power for too long. And I think China is in a much better position than the USSR, at least economically. Let's see how this goes.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#348

Post by dbuder »

dis-sys wrote: post #250
mc32 wrote: post #244

Earlier quoted context omitted.

China will try to avoid this extreme scenario lest they end up like Russia --at least Russia has natural resources to export, if nothing else. They will have learned that scaring off foreign investment is not good for their economy long-term. They don't want to squander their potential, I don't think. Still, they have serious problems to address. Issues the US and the EU and other Asian economies have with them vis a…

When google chose to quit from the Chinese market, many people told me that China basically cut itself off from the modern world. 8 years on, we all know full well what actually happened. Comparing China to Russia is laughable at best - China's domestic market is 10x the size of Russia, it is comparable to the entire EU but with only one language, one system plus one culture making it much easier to do marketing for…

China has a diverse range of languages and cultures. If the USA has 92% of people who speak English, China has a lower % that speak Mandarin.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#349

Post by Judgmentality »

enitihas wrote: post #347
ksec wrote: post #345

I don't mind this trade wars to continue, after all there will always be dispute between two largest nation. What I am worried is that this may turn into an actual war. And from what I can tell, China is not ruling out this possibility, it may not happen within next 2 - 3 years, but they are investing heavily into their military. And if you look into the reporting from US media and Chinese media, they are both extrem…

Well this certainly looks to set start another cold war. The US was not going be the only power for too long. And I think China is in a much better position than the USSR, at least economically. Let's see how this goes.

I'd have to go digging for the article, but one of the more interesting arguments I've heard for why the US won the Cold War is because of our superior manufacturing in-house. Similarly, think of China's advantage today in producing electronics and goods, and how they're so entrenched it's difficult for high security government projects to find parts that are considered safe. I think our slow decline in manufacturing over the previous decades would be what would cause the US to lose.

Re: China Once Looked Tough on Trade. Now Its Options Are Dwindling

#350

Post by philipodonnell »

gonvaled wrote: post #74

Extremely one sided comments, with a US centric view. The world is not the US, and HN readers are not only US citizens, so let me express a different point of view. Assumption: Trump wants fair trade. HN readers want fair trade. What is needed: fair trading rules, fair IP rules, fair capital structures, and a fair currency. Tackling some of the unfair trade practices does not address all those issues. In particular i…

> Assumption: Trump wants fair trade. HN readers want fair trade... The core of the problem is obviously that the initial assumption is false: Trump and HN do not want fairer trade, but trade one-sidedly beneffiting the US.

I realize your comment is not from a pro-US perspective, but try not to conflate a leader of a country with a group of users coming from that country. Many people on HN have nuanced views of the value of trade. If you read anything Trump has said or written on the topic its clear that he has no idea what international trade is or how tariffs work. Attributing any plan or intelligent design behind these things is one of the biggest mistakes we have made in addressing the problems created by this president. Its just what people "ooo" and "aaah" about at his rallies and that's all he cares about, but it attracts political allies that share that belief for their own reasons and that is who we see being selected to carry out US policies.

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