In this Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2012 photo, trucks transport containers at a port in Tianjin, China. The U.S. current account trade deficit widened in the first three months to the largest imbalance since late 2008, reflecting a big increase in imports in oil, cars and machinery and a drop in U.S. earnings on overseas investments. The Commerce Department says the deficit in the current account, the broadest measure of trade, jumped 15.7 percent to $137.3 billion, up from $118.7 billion in the final three months of last year.
Alexander F. Yuan, File, Associated Press
There is a huge trade imbalance between the United States and other countries. The reason for this is because tariffs have been lowered and import taxes have remand low. Last year the trade imbalance between the United States and China was $273.1 billion. This not only takes away from our independence as a nation but also cost us millions of jobs.
At the present time we charge a 5 percent tariff on imported goods. With value added tax, China collects 20 percent import fees on goods that are shipped to them. As a result of these unfair trade practices, we can not sell many of our goods to China and some of the other countries. If we do not stop these unfair trade practices our economy will continue to deteriorate.
Jacob Tyler Igielski
Murray
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Do you really think that the corporations, which have moved their operations overseas, who also donate heavily to our Congress will allow tariffs to be raised?
It's more complicated than that. What about our trade balances with all the other countries? If we raise our tariffs will they want to increase theirs? We already have subsidies for many of our exports that are supposed to help our own More..
Good letter. It has now been over 36 years now since the U.S. ran a trade surplus. This is due not just to our wimpy tariffs, but also to our eagerness to live beyond our means, to buy the world's production, even if we have to do it on credit. More..