President Donald Trump has just delayed the implementation of his universal tariff policy until August 1st.
Good evening,
President Donald Trump has just delayed the implementation of his universal tariff policy until August 1st.
Rather than eliminating the tariffs, the administration has merely deferred them — condemning US firms to 114 days of uncertainty and indecision by the time we reach August.
Despite recent claims that global trade has negative effects on the United States, free trade has significantly improved Americans' lives. It is what has allowed our country to focus on the industries we excel at, like medicine and tech, while enjoying lives of abundance through importing items that other countries can produce better or more efficiently.
Trade allows for specialization based on comparative advantage. A trade deficit is a natural outcome of a country importing goods that other countries are relatively better at producing, while the deficit country focuses its own resources on what it does relatively best.
President Trump has previously made the claim that a “trade deficit” means the United States is “losing,” and other countries are taking advantage of us, but this is simply not true.
Trade deficits are a normal and often beneficial aspect of a globalized economy.
You can watch our latest explainer separating fact from fiction on trade deficits below:
