Trade

Car parts could be China’s trade sledgehammer

10 Oct 2018

Beijing is running out of U.S. imports to tax but it has other ways to make things ugly. American carmakers depend on an uninterrupted flow of imported parts, and China is the No. 2 supplier. Any attempt to disrupt component shipments could throttle the likes of Ford and GM.

Anti-OPEC bill may squeeze U.S. oil industry

10 Oct 2018

The disappearance of a Saudi journalist is helping to breathe life into a bipartisan effort to subject the cartel to U.S. antitrust law. But it may prove more useful as a threat than reality. America’s energy producers benefit from OPEC’s price-fixing, too.

U.S. deal review could be new stick to beat China

10 Oct 2018

Minority stakes in U.S. tech firms will be under tougher scrutiny starting next month. That’s reasonable, and the Treasury, which will oversee reviews, has a rational approach. The risk is that hardliners co-opt the process to hurt Beijing once tariffs reach their limit.

China worries give luxury investors excuse to sell

9 Oct 2018

Reports of stricter customs checks on Chinese tourists returning from the week-long national holiday triggered a selloff in luxury stocks. Government curbs are nothing new. But the sector’s high valuations make shareholders nervous about any sign of weaker demand from China.

U.S.-China trade war morphs into loyalty test

4 Oct 2018

Vice President Mike Pence wants Google to halt a search-app project in China. He also said Beijing tried to get an American company to denounce U.S. policies in exchange for a license. With tariffs already imposed on most products, warped patriotism provides a new battleground.

Cyber risks deserve top billing more often

4 Oct 2018

Global trade tensions have dominated recent economic news. Thursday’s revelations of possible Chinese computer-hardware meddling and Russian hacking of a world chemical-weapons body and sports-doping watchdogs give justified prominence to what may be a bigger threat to growth.

Copper caught in crossfire of trade war

4 Oct 2018

Escalating tensions between Washington and Beijing have helped drag down the red metal by some 14 pct since June. The price is now well below levels required to inspire mining giants to invest in new supply, even though existing pits are ageing fast and green demand is on a tear.

China’s winter production cuts are down, not out

4 Oct 2018

Beijing has reduced pollution targets and delegated output decisions to local authorities. That looks like a retreat after last year’s heavy industry pain, which pushed up steel prices. The reality is more complex: officials still want to balance green imperatives with growth.

China’s Big Brother drafted into trade war

3 Oct 2018

Washington is mulling export controls and sanctions on companies whose technology helps Beijing crack down on Muslim minorities. The unexpected U.S. attention may hit suppliers such as Intel and foreign-investor zeal for the likes of $39 bln Chinese surveillance titan Hikvision.

U.S. fritters oil stockpile at worst time

1 Oct 2018

While President Trump chides OPEC, his Iran sanctions are pushing up prices. Meanwhile the government is selling down its stockpile to plug a budget hole, not calm the market. With shale producers constrained, the White House should be more strategic with its crude reserve.

NAFTA is dead – long live NAFTA

1 Oct 2018

Canada and the United States agreed to update and rename the trade pact just in time for signing by the current Mexican government. Ottawa will open its dairy market and regional auto content will be increased. Supporters of the trilateral deal can breathe a sigh of relief.

Trump-friendly trade reform is a hard ask

1 Oct 2018

A trio of international bodies want to tackle some of the U.S. president’s gripes with the WTO and enable more side deals. Yet the proposals do little to bridge differences between Beijing and Washington that threaten the trading system. They also face big headwinds on services.

Donald Trump sets WTO up for failure

27 Sep 2018

The system for resolving commerce disputes may grind to a halt after the United States blocked the reappointment of an appeal judge at the global trade body. The president’s disdain for the organisation is no secret, but the move undermines its value to other countries, too.

Japan bends without breaking on U.S. trade

27 Sep 2018

After resisting for months, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe finally agreed to bilateral talks with Donald Trump. He had little choice given how vulnerable Toyota and other carmakers are to U.S. tariffs. Sticking with TPP, however, has given Japan leverage in areas such as agriculture.

China’s tariff cuts are silver lining of trade war

27 Sep 2018

Import taxes on many industrial goods are coming down, expanding earlier reductions and lowering the overall rate to 7.5 pct from 9.8 pct. That may blunt charges of protectionism abroad and help companies at home. Expected savings also should result in a stronger Chinese economy.

Congress is too close to crying wolf on trade

25 Sep 2018

America and Canada aren’t near a NAFTA deal and time is short. U.S. lawmakers have said they won’t accept the U.S.-Mexico only pact favored by Trump, but some have criticized Ottawa. If they back down, there’s little hope for any meaningful brake on steel tariffs and the like.

BMW justifies carmakers’ slow lane valuation

25 Sep 2018

Investors fled the sector this year on trade-war fears and new emission rules. At around six times earnings, Europe’s automakers were starting to look cheap. The German group’s profit warning, however, is a reminder of carmakers’ limitless capacity to generate bad news.

Rodrigo Duterte’s toughest foe may be inflation

21 Sep 2018

The Filipino strongman finds himself under pressure from quickly rising prices for fuel, rice and more. The weaker peso and the president’s ill-timed tax overhaul are factors. The central bank, late to recognise the scale of the issue, could help with an aggressive rate hike.

Trump tariffs fallout hints at protracted battle

21 Sep 2018

As U.S. companies brace for taxes on another $200 bln of Chinese exports, many say they’re considering leaving the People’s Republic. That has Beijing wondering if such an exodus is as much a policy aim as IP theft. It’s one more reason to think the trade war is here to stay.

The Exchange: A chat with Gary Cohn

18 Sep 2018

President Trump’s first National Economic Council director and former Goldman Sachs No. 2 discusses the financial crisis and its aftermath with Gina Chon. He also gives his take on tax cuts and trade, and explains why JPMorgan boss Jamie Dimon would make a “phenomenal” president.