Not really true, but what Powell/FED did as a mistake was to keep the monetary supports for the economy too long when Covid impacts were cooling down. Powell has been open about this in questioning sessions with the congress, where he admitted they underestimated the strength of the US economy so they didn’t ease the monetary supports fast enough.
The thing about the US inflation is that it is balancing now, most analysts agree with Powell that the worst thing that can happen is lowering the interest rate too fast, thus fueling inflation with a possible rate increase again. The US economy is still not stagnant, so no extreme rush to cut rates. If the unemployment figures rises more, then FED have said they will cut rates. Their priority is only two things, inflation and labor market, they don’t care what Trump says. FED is independent, not tied to politics
so lets yak about how these tariffs are likely to affect you individually, not asking anyone in particular, but everyone in general.
for me in the USA, i am not sure exactly how it is going to affect me. It could mean higher prices for everything and i mean everything. Because even if I dont buy more chinese made clothing (and most of my clothes I have now are made in china , come to think of it NOTHING i wear is made in the USA, a big fat zero) BUT i have enough clothes and shoes for the moment so its not going to affect me for a year. I dont buy any toys from china or need to buy any furniture or household items. Actually i dont think i need to buy anything really for the next year. However, i think when i go to replace tires for my cars the tires will cost more as they are not american made. And when i get an oil change it will cost more as the filters are chinese made. Oil is american though. IF i need car parts these will cost more as a lot of the car parts are chinese made. I think prices of groceries and restaurant prices will go up as OTHER people are affected by these tariffs, costs get divided into everything.
HOw will the average taiwanese get affected? I suppose the TW dollar appreciating in value will make overseas trips cheaper?
How do you expect tariffs to affect you in taiwan?
oh for one thing the treats my cats eat twice a day at near a buck a treat are made in thailand and gawd forbid these will likely cost even more (gasp).
the 4 cats eat bout 7 bucks a day just in treats ! The foods that i buy? Lets see. Spaghetti sauce from italy, will increase. Coffee will increase , but i only buy a few bottles of instant coffee a year so its no biggie. Donno, i dont buy a lot of imported foods or drinks. I can drink local beer dont have to drink imports. A lot of our fruits here are sourced from mexico and chile mostly. So those will go up.
Restaurant prices will likely go up meaning even less trips out to eat then.
Our exports went totally down for more common commodity type stuff (niche stuff they cant get rlsewhere they just accepted it) until he paused the tarrifs and everyone ordered again.
As always, the poorer you are, the more fucked you are, as you are more reliant on cheap goods, and you spend a higher portion of your income at retail. If you’re in the market for an Aston Martin though, you’re in better shape tariff wise than than a Ford made in Canada with 50% American content.
Until the past few years, most of my work clothes were US made, but many American manufacturers have gotten really, really greedy and raised prices way beyond inflation / costs , using COVID supply chain / inflation as an excuse (this is known due to margins). For example, I used to get US made Brooks Brothers OCBDs for ~$80, now they want $200. Fuck that.
Dude, you’re in California. Hit the farmers markets.
I’ve noticed clothing have gotten more expensive while the quality down in general. Lots of mixed polyester fabric now too. I’ve not shopped brand name for a while for this reason.
I just tried some OCBDs from Spier and McKay - newish Canadian company that sources from India and China. Great fabric, good quality, about $60/shirt. I’d pay double that for Canadian / US made, which easily makes up any difference in labor prices, but I’m not aware of anything of that quality made in US / Canada that exists at that price point any more.
I get all mine tailored from Vietnam. Found a great place in Hanoi that does it. Every time I go for business I stop by and get some shirts, jackets, and pants made.
They do a good job with my pants which is rare in Asia as they struggle with larger and longer athletic legs. And the prices are fantastic.
I have looked at Spier and McKay as they’re popular with some menswear YouTubers. But I haven’t been to Brooks brothers in years now.
Same here. I don’t think I’ve bought any American-made clothes in years. Even “American” brands source everything overseas now. I stick to clearance sales and outlet stores too. Retail prices are just insane.
If there were any doubts previously, they were firmly allayed via the trade “deal” with the UK: This administration is all about the photo op and grand pronouncements- substance is secondary. This is Trump’s idea of deal making? Countries are taking note, of course.
OK, so! After a month of negotiations, we finally have a “full and comprehensive” trade agreement with our old pals across the pond.
Huge news! What a relief, right? Pop the champagne, the trade war nightmare is almost over…
What’s that? What’s in it, you ask? Like, what is the “deal” part of the deal?
OK, so it’s more of a concept of a deal. If a trade deal is, like, Michelangelo’s David, this is more like a block of marble. Or really it’s like a receipt from the marble guy that says we’ve placed an order for a block of marble.
Maybe put the champagne back in the fridge.
Asked by reporters in England whether this deal marks an improvement on the US-UK relationship of six months ago, before Trump took office, Starmer replied: “The question you should be asking is: Is it better than where we were yesterday?”
Which is a gentle British way of saying: Look, we’re all doing our little dances in the Trump show to avoid tempting the wrath of the leader of the world’s biggest economy.
What do you mean? This is clearly a win this round for the US.
China is really the only country that has enough leverage to play hardball. Beyond all the tough talk, most countries are going to be rushing to make deals with the US.
The article makes it seem like the UK is outplaying Trump by doing a song and dance as they say but the reality is the UK is desperate to find trading partners with other countries after Brexit and Trump knows that.
The U.S. got more than it gave. Trump squeezed the UK, and they blinked
I don’t think you’re getting the right kind of information from CNN here. I’m a bit surprised you bought their spin on this. I can tell you that people in the UK are genuinely shocked they got fleeced. The government will probably try to focus on some of the benefits but clearly the US won this initial stage.
Trump will also do the same thing to the EU next in my prediction. The EU isn’t as unified as they pretend to be, Eastern Europe and Italy understands how important the US is for trade and won’t try to put on the tough talk other EU nations did.
I take issue with the big pronouncements compared to the end result, which is a nothingburger, especially by comparison.
Compare this:
“We will have a very, very big announcement to make. Like as big as it gets. And I won’t tell you on what,” Mr. Trump said, before adding “it is really, really positive.”
To this:
Here is what the US and the UK announced Thursday: President Donald Trump’s team took the US tax on British imports from 10% to checks notes 10%. Yes, it is the exact same tariff rate that Trump announced on April 2, but with some fun new carve-outs:
British cars: That Bentley you’ve had your eye on was going to be taxed at 27.5%, but now it’s only 10%. Great news for that sliver of Americans in the market for a Land Rover, Jaguar, Rolls-Royce or Aston Martin. No other consumer goods were mentioned.
Planes: British companies can now send plane parts to the US tariff-free. In return, British Airways is expected to order 30 Boeing 787 Dreamliner jets, according to Bloomberg.
Steel and aluminum: Taxes on steel and what the Brits call “aluminium” (adorable) will be scrapped.
Beef: Both countries get a bunch of tariff-free exports on commodities including beef and other agricultural products.
That’s honestly it — there are no more details, as both sides said specifics are still being ironed out. It’s not all that surprising, given that traditionally trade deals require months or even years of painstaking talks.
Once again, everything seems like a big fat lie with this administration. A charade. A show to make Trump happy.
I read Fox News daily. I do try to get both sides. Just a few posts above (or was it in another thread?), I posted someone who agrees with Trump and his criticism of Powell. As for the CNN take on the deal with the UK, they are correct in pointing out the theatrics of the “deal.”
You’re confusing style with substance. Trump’s delivery might be theatrical, but the outcomes are some key wins.
UK steel and aluminum tariffs scrapped, luxury car duties slashed from 27.5% to 10%, massive new market access for U.S. beef and ethanol, and Boeing locking in a 30-jet order. That’s not “nothing” that’s leverage turned into tangible wins.
30 planes is a big order for Boeing. That’s worth upwards of 4-5bn and I do welcome the modernization of BAs fleet as someone who flies with them.
US selling more ethanol is a huge win. It used to be blocked from EU restrictions, this is another example of what I’ve been saying when the EU uses regulations to mask protectionism. Trump always took issue with this particular situation. It’s a win for both sides actually with midwestern states getting a boost and UK not having to depend on EU ethonol sources.
I don’t agree these are nothing burgers. They are significant and it was done quickly.
Meanwhile, the UK gave up key concessions just to get partial relief and still faces a 10% baseline tariff. If this is a charade, it’s one where the U.S. walked away with the better hand.
This is still just the initial stage of the deal but so far the US is clearly getting more than they gave up.