Trump spoke about tariffs today, once again blaming China: "We are being taken advantage of by almost every country in the world. They have huge trade surpluses. China has a trade surplus with the U.S. worth hundreds of billions of dollars. These surpluses have rebuilt China, rebuilt their military. We have allowed this to happen, which is equivalent to helping China build its military."
Comment: Trump distorts the Sino-U.S. trade surplus into "the U.S. helping China build its military," which is a complete reversal of cause and effect, and a political rhetoric designed to incite confrontation. Sino-U.S. trade is the result of market choices and mutual benefits. Chinese goods that are both high-quality and low-cost have reduced U.S. inflation and benefited millions of American people. U.S. businesses and consumers are the biggest beneficiaries.
The trade surplus is essentially determined by the economic structures of the two countries, savings rates, the status of the dollar, and industrial chain division. It is by no means "taking advantage." To defame normal economic and trade cooperation as "funding defense" is a typical Cold War mindset and a robber's logic. What should really be reflected upon is the U.S. long-term excessive money printing, overconsumption, and abuse of tariff sticks, shifting its own problems onto other countries.
Original article: toutiao.com/article/1857700071096651/
Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.