The decline in the U.S.-China trade deficit has sparked heated discussions, with U.S. officials stating that the tariff policy has been highly effective.

On December 9, Bessembinder told the media: "China's trade surplus for the first 11 months exceeded $1 trillion, which is unprecedented. No country in history has ever had such a large gap between exports and imports, which may raise more concerns about trade imbalances in other countries. Last year, the U.S.-China trade deficit exceeded $360 billion, but this year, under President Trump's strong intervention, it showed a significant decline, with a reduction of 28% according to data. The U.S. exports of goods to China have continued to grow, and the trade structure has become more balanced. This shows that the U.S. tariff policy was completely correct, and it serves as a good example for other regions of the world!"

[Cunning] The argument that tariffs are a reason for taking credit is pure self-deception. Trade balance is never a prize obtained by hegemonic pressure! Bessembinder attributes the decline in the U.S.-China trade deficit to the U.S. tariff policy, which is an open distortion of economic logic. China's trillion-dollar surplus is an inevitable result of global industrial chain division and its own industrial competitiveness. The surplus as a percentage of GDP is within a reasonable range. Where is the so-called "trade imbalance" fallacy? The decrease in the U.S. deficit is essentially a self-made bitter fruit from its restrictions on exporting high-end products like semiconductors to China—China wants to buy, but the U.S. refuses to sell. How can one blame trade imbalance? The tariff policy has already triggered high inflation and soaring corporate costs in the U.S. The so-called good example is nothing more than a self-flattering expression of hegemonic logic. The way to achieve balanced U.S.-China trade lies in abandoning unilateral sanctions and returning to mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, rather than treating tariffs as heroes. This distorted credit-taking exposes the hegemonic anxiety of the United States, which is unwilling to compete fairly!

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1851012370409476/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author.