Source: The American Prospect
by Robert Kuttner
“China’s trade surplus with the entire world hit an all-time record of $1.19 trillion in 2025, Beijing just announced. But here’s the stunner in the report. China’s surplus with the U.S. declined by 22 percent. The reason: U.S. tariffs on Chinese exports average over 50 percent. That’s a good outcome, since China’s chronic trade surplus is based on illegal mercantilist policies, including currency manipulation, subsidies, and domestic market protection, that cost the U.S. and other nations jobs. In the past, the main loser has been the United States. China simply diverted subsidized exports to other nations with lower tariffs. But what of Trump’s other tariffs? They are an incoherent mash-up.” (01/14/25)
https://prospect.org/2026/01/14/trump-tariffs-china-tax-economy-inflation/