this post was submitted on 09 Mar 2025
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[–] [email protected] 10 points 2 hours ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

US trade delegate Jamieson Greer has called on American companies to report unfair trade practices by partner countries, according Budliger Artieda. This applies in particular to G20 countries and states with a strongly positive trade balance with the US.

You would not expect an efficient world market to have a zero bilateral trade balance between each pair of countries in it.

Say we have a world with three countries.

Country A is good at producing apples and consumes a lot of beans.

Country B is good at producing beans and consumes a lot of cherries.

Country C is good at producing cherries and consumes a lot of apples.

No country on there should have a zero bilateral trade balance with any other country. Country A should run a deficit with B and surplus with C. B should run a deficit with C and surplus with A. C should run a deficit with A and surplus with B.

You could, with sufficient regulation, prevent that from happening, but you'd be giving up the gains you get from comparative advantage.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 hours ago

2000% tariff on American made watches to Switzerland

[–] [email protected] 9 points 4 hours ago

trump has a trade deficit with mcdonalds too. Time to annex them or something.

[–] [email protected] 49 points 6 hours ago (2 children)

The Orange Moron is doing a really good job at uniting and integrating former allies against him

β€œBut we certainly can’t be accused of being unfair. Switzerland has unilaterally abolished its industrial tariffs, we have no pharmaceutical tariffs. US companies can export their products to Switzerland duty-free,”

[–] [email protected] 35 points 6 hours ago (2 children)

And in the same quote:

we have been doing exactly what President Trump wants for a long time

And I believe her.

So how did CH get on that list?

US trade delegate Jamieson Greer has called on American companies to report unfair trade practices by partner countries

So some businessperson with a grievance decides what gets onto some government list? Truly an oligarchy.

That said I'd like to know a bit more about the whole (yet another) international debacle.

[–] [email protected] 19 points 6 hours ago* (last edited 6 hours ago) (2 children)

I guess they just didn't like the trade deficit because they think it means "losing"

Also Trump views a VAT as an unfair tariff even if it applies equally to both domestic and foreign companies. He's completely dishonest, so don't expect any logic(I don't buy that he's that dumb)

https://fortune.com/2025/02/15/trump-hate-vat-why-europe-consumption-tax-has-us-vowing-reciprocal-tariffs/

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 hour ago

Also Trump views VAT

I don't know about that. The problem is that you cannot take Trump statements as straightforward representations of his views. He says plenty of things just because they're politically useful, without regard for truth.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 2 hours ago

Trump is the epitome of the Republican sentiment "Unless I have privilege I'm being oppressed"

[–] [email protected] 11 points 6 hours ago

I wonder what the plan is when one oligarch needs the country’s product and another wants the country tariffed. I guess whoever has the larger bribes wins?

[–] [email protected] 9 points 5 hours ago

It is as if the Cheater in Chief is turning everything to shit that he touchess. I can't wait for the 30'000% tariffs on Swiss gold or whatever his idea will be.

[–] [email protected] 39 points 6 hours ago (2 children)

When we have absolutely no allies left except Russia, America will truly be great again.

[–] [email protected] 28 points 6 hours ago (2 children)

Not sure I'd call Russia an ally rather than a puppetmaster

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 hours ago

Though the US has always had a certain tendency to act similarly after WW2 ...

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 hours ago

That's good because it means there won't be anyone in the way of a socialist revolution, comrade!

[–] [email protected] 26 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

Can't have a trade deficit if you don't have trade.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 5 hours ago

-"Trade deficit went down 50%!!"

(Trade went down 60%)

[–] [email protected] 15 points 6 hours ago

Where are our right wing assholes now who said they would prefer trump? Trump would be better for Switzerland? Fucking SVP morons

[–] [email protected] 21 points 6 hours ago (1 children)

Time for someone to leak a list of billionaires' Swiss bank accounts.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 5 hours ago

I'd prefer if someone managed to Robin Hood those accounts, instead.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 6 hours ago

I mean sure, why the fuck not? Who's left at this point?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 6 hours ago

Our spineless politicians are going to react well to this, I'm sure.