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Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

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Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#931
post #888

As a canadian, i'm so over this drama. They will either trade with us or they won't. If they don't it will be painful - but im happy with the government reciprocating in kind (so we arent being taken andvantage of), and then moving on as best as possible. At some point you have to stop worrying about the things you cannot change. If trump wants a lose-lose deal, so be it.

Unfortunately for Canada, you guys have screwed up. Why? Because you're completely dependent on the US for energy exports. All that oil you dig up and turn the landscape into the Moon for goes out via pipes to the US from where it's refined and/or exported. Canada has almost no oil export infrastructure of its own (meaning pipelines going to ports).

May I ask what you think will happen to US gas prices if Canadian oil exports to the US (over 4 million barrels per day) are made more expensive (with tariffs or export restrictions)? In the midst of the Iran war, Ukraine’s attacks against Russian refinery capacity, and the Bab el Mendeb closure, many of these issues are directly caused by the same US administration. In the current context, who do you think has more negotiating leverage?

Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#932

The world should've collectively recognised what Liberation Day was and responded together, in lock step, and in kind. Instead, the Europeans caved, Japanese caved (PM resigned after doing so), Republic of Korea caved (PM resigned after doing so), India of course caved and so on, shattering any prospect of collective action which might pull the rogue hegemon back into line. Now, the US is simply able to renege or ren…

You underestimate how much more investment is happing in EU to be more independent of the USA.

Im also pretty sure that people start looking more to China than before.

Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#933

It's still surprising to me that countries legit tried to negociate a trade deal with this administration. I think it would have been easier to just discount the US until 2028 and make compensate trade with the rest of the parties involved, a canada-mexico-eu-japan-korea trade axis is easier to pull off than a mutually beneficial trade agreement with the US at the moment.

It probably means nothing, but it’s now impossible to rationally say Canada is acting unjustifiably or targeting the US to legitimately trigger these new tariffs. It’s like a PIP for our relationship with the US.

However the US government is not rational anymore, otherwise this will get challenged and thrown out. That’s a long shot though.

As a Canadian, I’m so tired of the US’s antics. Everyone I know is. Sun Tzu teaches to never fight an enemy with their back against the wall, and I think the US will find they’ve emboldened Canadians to absorb pain as there’s no escape.

Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#934

Reciprocal tariffs alone don’t make much sense, it’s just making things for Canadians more expensive with an adversary that’s larger and can sustain them longer (although how long remains to be seen with guilt yields rising.) If they really want to hurt them start making it legal to circumvent DRM on American products and allow build meaningful replacements.

I don’t think you can approach it from a rational economic perspective because that’s not how it started: it’s a dominance power play and what we’ve seen with China and the EU is that standing up to a bully is the only thing which causes them to back down. If you accept the offer, people like that see it as a sign they could’ve asked for more.

The companies who are forced to raise prices are politically well-connected, mostly as part of his party, and I’m sure the Canadian government is banking on their executives and his laid-off voters pushing him to cut a deal.

Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#936

It's still surprising to me that countries legit tried to negociate a trade deal with this administration. I think it would have been easier to just discount the US until 2028 and make compensate trade with the rest of the parties involved, a canada-mexico-eu-japan-korea trade axis is easier to pull off than a mutually beneficial trade agreement with the US at the moment.

It probably means nothing, but it’s now impossible to rationally say Canada is acting unjustifiably or targeting the US to legitimately trigger these new tariffs. It’s like a PIP for our relationship with the US. However the US government is not rational anymore, otherwise this will get challenged and thrown out. That’s a long shot though. As a Canadian, I’m so tired of the US’s antics. Everyone I know is. Sun Tzu te…

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Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#937

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>so we arent being taken andvantage of For the last time...that's not how trade works! People who say this in this context mean well, but are committing the exact same category error/misunderstanding of economics that Trump and his supporters are.

It is 100% how trade works. Free trade for both sides = good for both sides. Lopsided deals where one side gets the free flow of trade but the other side gets protectionism = exploitative. What is the category error here? Where is the misunderstanding? If you really believed what you wrote, why do you think trade deals exist in the first place? What function do you think they serve?

Protectionism is harmful to both sides though, not just the one being "protected". If Thailand can more efficiently produce socks, and Canada can more efficiently produce lumber, it doesn't make sense to "protect" the Canadian sock industry. It just makes socks more expensive for Canadians. Let those Canadian sock workers go produce lumber instead.

Re: Canada will match US tariffs 'dollar for dollar' as trade talks break down

#938

This is the way. If the US imposes tariffs, impose tariffs on US goods. The US administration twists facts to suit their agenda. For example, they often complain about the trade deficit the US has with other countries. However, that deficit often (depends on the country) only exists if you exclude digital goods (Microsoft, Google, Apple, etc.). If the rest of the world were to restrict the import of those digital goo…

Trade deficits are good though. They are otherwise called capital surpluses. America gets to send worthless pieces of paper with dead presidents on them, and in return we get real, physical goods with finite supply.
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