Meanwhile, American manufacturing and farming withers and the evil trade deficit soars. So much winning.
1
Trump choked. Again.
Do Trump’s actions point to the following?
I.) Trump declares China tariff deal; “Trust me!” Stocks explode bigly and Trump (and pals) sell like crazy
II.) Trump declares China “deals unfairly...” so tariff talks collapse. Stocks collapse bigly and Trump (and pals) buy like crazy
III.) Trump continues this pattern every few hours, days, and/or weeks, while telling his base he’s the best deal maker in history of universe; base weeps with exalted adoration
IV.) Senators and McConnell check polls; do nothing, while Dem voters see their physicians for bleeding ulcers
V.) Bloomberg sharpens his pencils; starts taking lots of vitamins; Dem candidates develop Trichotillomania
VI.) World leaders believe the US has lost its collective mind. They are correct.
5
It's pretty clear by now that very little (if anything) Trump does is in good faith or even competent. Trying to understand the "gamesmanship" of these negotiations is a fool's errand.
The most plausible explanations for this turn of events are a)Trump juicing the market to curry favor with the Wall Street big boys and b) a pathetic attempt to keep the attention on himself by building 'on the next episode' style suspense.
It is likely both.
3
Not surprised, except that he did this so soon. Trump continually fails to keep his word, ruining the reputation of America. He seems to believe that keeping others guessing gives him an advantage, when it really just makes him appear unreliable. Why should this be any different?
4
On tariffs (Econ 101)
You can either have manufacturing in this country and tariffs on products manufactured in low wage countries, or you can have cheaper imported manufactured goods and no manufacturing, BUT YOU CAN NOT HAVE BOTH
It is EXACTLY as in agriculture. US farmers can grow corn grown for ethanol in this country because their are tariffs on lower cost bio-ethanol from Brazil. The 10% ethanol in the gas you pour into your car would be cheaper without this tariff
And it is EXACTLY like in the subset of the auto industry that produces pick ups and large SUVs. There's is 25% import tariff since 1964 - which is why you can't buy foreign made Pickups and Lincoln Navigators
You could have cheaper Pickups without that tariff
Do you want to ?
1
Stay the course on China tariffs -- rollbacks only upon actual performance rather than promises. There is bi-partisan support for this. The only reason Chinese are even talking is tariffs.
This is going to be a minority point of view -- while Trump has done almost everything else wrong and may not deserve to be re-elected, he has done absolutely right with respect to China.
4
@RSSF Tell that to the family farmers. You are just wrong on this one.
1
Trump has already surrendered. Right now he is hoping to negotiate the signing of the surrender on American soil to give the appearance of a victory. The Chinese are just toying with him.
4
As much as I despise the man I think I understand Trump, but I don't understand his China policy. Why is he being so intransigent on this? He cares about headlines, not substantive change. Why hasn't he broken down, returned to the status quo, and declared a "major victory"? Does he believe his rhetoric? Is he waiting for a pre-election "victory"?
This time I don't know.
Trump will not be reelected if the trade war continues. He will cave into China's demands and declare a victory with a great new trade deal. Trump is all about winning and he does not care how he gets there.
2
'It is still unclear when and where a [trade] deal might be inked.' Why not mainland China? Mr. Trump might suggest that if a signing ceremony with Mr. Xi takes place, he would like it to be held in the China. It would be great for an American president to show that he is not kowtowing to a backwards country like China. I think this is a win/win for everybody.
1
WHY does the press continue to waste time asking Trump what he plans to do? The man is a befuddled mess and even HE doesn't know what he might do moment to moment
"Maybe I will, but maybe I won't...but I might ...probably"
5
Donald Trump is an arsonist.
He set the fire (the China trade war), and now wants to return to the scene of the fire and take credit for putting it out.
===
He has achieved nothing for the people of the United States.
Actually, less than nothing. Two steps back, one step forward -- at best.
4
Dear Congressional Republicans,
Why do you tolerate this Reality TV show of a presidency? For example, Mr. Trump's ridiculous trade war with China. He cares not if we get concessions, such as protection for American I.P. rights. He only cares about the media, and the anticipation. Stay tuned for the next episode of the presidential apprentice.
You all know better. But you are addicted to the show, rather than serving your constituents, the American people.
We will not forget this. You will be voted out of office in 2020.
Good riddance!
4
.. The tariffs & trade war have accomplished nothing..in terms of trade policy. They have hurt our economy.. So what is the point of going through this nonsense.?
1
We have a president, who works for the people of this country. Unfortunately, we are stuck with the political elite, who work for everything else, such as money, illegal immigrants, multinational corporations, etc. Trump is our only hope.
1
Now that is a very candid view of things!
@smith Thanks for giving me something to laugh at today. Worth reading you comment just for the entertainment value.
1
Dear Midwestern Farmers,
Why do you believe a word that Mr. Trump says about trade? He permanently destroyed your export markets. (And for no good reason.)
Look at your bottom line. Look at the future of your family farm, and your business, and the impending threat of your own bankruptcy. And vote accordingly.
3
Forget the trade war. Trump is discovering even 'phases' are not easy to win.
2
Another NY Times article on trade which simply ignores the fact that China is being hurt much more badly than the US in the trade war. In the first nine months of 2019, Chinese exports to the U.S. fell by a whopping $53 billion. US exports to China fell by just $14.5 billion during the same time frame. When the size of each economy is taken into account, the pain on China is even more magnified since their GDP is about 1/3 smaller than ours.
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/11/05/trade-losses-for-the-us-china-mount-into-tens-of-billions-of-dollars.html
3
@JB Poor China is only growing at 6%. Imagine the word barrage we would receive if the US was at 6%. The problem is China can control their citizens reaction to hard times where the US cannot. Maybe that's not fair but, you have to admit, it's true.
1
Will he or won't he?
Be sure to tune in for the next episode of the presidential apprentice.
===
What is wrong with you people, Trump supporters?
You have reduced the world's lone remaining superpower, the United States of America, to the level of a Reality TV Show -- and a grade school gossip mill.
3
In other words, don't speak about tariffs until the Emperor speaks.
Sweet and sour is our boss;
sometimes happy, sometimes cross.
Even China can't predict
are they winning, are they licked.
He might give them breaks galore,
or produce a mighty roar.
Trump can never much decide . . .
is he Jekyll, is he Hyde?
4
Just like what happened in Syria in October 2019, a particular country and its people will be run over ... whenever we hear the phrase ... Trump "has not yet decided ..."
Whoa.....this is exciting!!
I can't wait for next weeks episode
and more empty promises,
hot air,
arrogance
and ignorance
from
Donald the Magnificent.
3
Any talk about Trump "negotiating" is ludicrous. This buffoon doesn't negotiate, he just bloviates and bullies and pretends to be a master of manipulation. What we know is that he's only capable of forming an opinion and acting impulsively from one minute to the next, with no discipline or policy in the traditional sense, and his lackeys like Navarro have to do the actual work with the distinct possibility that their madman boss will change his mind at any point. The whole scene is chaos, which has to present challenges for China or any other country trying to deal with this bizarro.
2
Why is there resistance to tariffs? Essentially they are a form of corporate tax. All the leading Democrat candidates favor substantially increasing the corporate tax rate.
2
@clarity007
Tariffs are not a corporate tax. Rather, they are a de facto national sales tax on consumers, meaning you and me.
3
@clarity007 It's true that Dem wants to increase corporate taxes. But it only wants to increase US companies' taxes. Have you ever seen it increased any taxes on foreign companies? The tariff is paid by foreigners through price concessions.
1
@smith
Same. U.S. companies importing tariffed goods increase prices. Tax (tariff) goes to government
6 of 1 and half a dozen of the other! If he hadn't put them on in the first place he wouldn't need to roll them back.
I doubt China is hurting as much as the USA and it is not sitting on its laurels and is formulating new trade agreements with other international nations.
USA needs to remember it will never get the trade agreements back that Obama had negotiated for USA, even if they want to join free trade agreements. Trump is detrimental to the USA when it comes to trade but immigration is a bigger issue so that might just get him re-elected.
7
Trump is just playing around and lying to his base so he can delude them into thinking that he is doing something about the Chinese agricultural tariffs.
6
In some deals you can't swoop the verbal victory for substantial conditions.
Both Trump and Xi can't afford to loose face.
Mrs Merkel often let the others claim victory as long as she got her way. This is not possible here.
Please set aside for a moment the incompetence of the current administration.
There are a few issues I am concerned about:
Did the SEC look into this up/down at the stock market? This looks like an insider trading from the very top and I am wonder who has benefited so far.
Setting up a new trade "deal" should consider some very important topics such as the ongoing climate change (what is the footprint of CO2 and other great house gases for every product that is produces, what is the limit, what needs to be taxed if the limit is exceeded, etc.)
What are the labor costs here and there, a trade "deal" should agree on a minimum wage that is paid in all countries.
Declare no child labor!
Respect IPRs
At the end of the day there is more transparency and work required to make a 21th century trade agreement that acknowledges the existing climate change, makes the right adjustments to curb climate change and acknowledges our interdependency with the rest of the world.
Unfortunately, with the current administration we cannot count on that path.
The hope is the 2020 election - and potentially a successful impeachment.
3
Sooooo, the so-called Tarrifs never should have been implemented in the first place. The cost for the Bankrupter in Chief Tariff Failure will cost each household between $500 to $1700.
5
The empire fights back. The Chinese are going to get everything they want from Trump or they won’t make a deal. No deal before the election is bad news for Trump.
4
Americans are deluding themselves by thinking that cheap consumer goods from China make the U.S. the clear winner in the so-called free trade debacle.
Lowering tariffs on China manufacture goods? I'd be raising them sky-high.
1
@Michael
We (the world) tried that in the 1930s. It resulted in the Great Depression and WWII.
But perhaps the second try will be the charm. /sarc
1
This is stock manipulation, plain and simple. I wonder if we will ever know the full extent of the Trump family's crimes.
9
@Marcus G
Agreed.
Look into Dan Scavino, Mr. Trump's White House social media director (and former golf caddy).
You can't make this stuff up.
2
"...not a complete rollback, because they know I won't do it," he said. "he" is Trump. "they", the Chinese, me, a few million Americans, and a few billion citizens of this world - all know nothing of the sort. None of us, including Trump, have the foggiest idea whether Trump "won't do it', will do it, or will be just another "no -show".
1
USA needs to take the same attitude as Australia to illegal immigration and sub-let one of it's Pacific Islands as a holding cell for illegals and advertise in the nations they are from telling them if they try to enter the USA illegally, then they will NEVER be allowed to apply for citizenship legally.
People trafficking is a business that lots of criminal gangs and corrupt government officals make money from because of the bribes they take. It was big business for all the government officials and people traffickers when they sent boats to Australia. Most of them were economic immigrants who had paid lots of money to people traffickers and government officials to get them to Australia. Before Australia cracked down on illegal immigration, they used to ring up the harbour master, from their cell phones, to come and pick them up when they were inside the Australian territorial zone.
USA needs to do something to curb illegal immigration otherwise Trump will just get voted in again. Illegal immigration only profits people who want slave labour and criminal gangs.
1
Hmm, maybe the Trump Familia didn’t get the market bounce they wanted?
Then again, it’s probably just the Don yanking everyone’s chain, saying “Look at me! Look at me!”
4
Having this buffoon "foistered" on the world economy is like having Charlie Manson put in charge of the nuclear codes.
6
Can we please stop this reality television soap opera? Please?
4
Nothing new. Isn't this what "Warning" anonymous writer says?
1
Trump needs to be voted out of office because his policies do not work. From a ridiculous wall, huge waste of money, that will stop no one, to his tariffs that have turned farmers into welfare recipients to the tune of 20 BILLION dollars in bailout money as he has destroyed their markets with his tariffs. Trump is a loser and so are his policies.
2
How many times is he going to juice the stock market “ great day on Wall Street.....enjoy” before people wise up, do your investigations look at sell off numbers never buy in at high markets,who’s really gaining here
20
@CathyK Although I am heavily invested about 50/50 in stocks and bonds/cash, it's clear this market is being manipulated. I expect to lose much of what I gained this year, which is why I am keeping a lot of cash.
1
The United States economy must grow but it’s consumers’ demand does not support it, so it needs more foreign consumers to grow the domestic economy. Tariffs will limit such opportunities. Trump seems not to appreciate this.
4
Enough!! Get this idiot and his chaos out of the White House!
16
I thought China was going to reverse all the tariffs. This is a bit like the story of, The Emperor and his New Clothes, where nothing is really happening because if he hadn't put the tariffs on in the first place, then he wouldn't have to reverse them. One step forward and two steps backward.
This just shows that China isn't cowering to USA and has more global power under Trump as they are a member of the Paris Climate Accord and picking up more trade with other members of the Climate Paris Accord. NZ just had there free trade agreement upgraded with China and now China is the main nation we export to.
Trump has done a lot of harm to USA power as a superpower because China sees they don't have the superpower they thought they did. Not a good look for USA.
The worse thing the USA did under Trump was undo all the good work that Obama had done for USA to get free trade agreements.
You can't eat oil.
6
What Trump is going to do with a rising China? Difficult to negotiate with the tricky Chinese. They started out with nothing and now they are the world's number two economy. If we don't do it right China will become the number one economy. China century.
1
@McLean123
"If we don't do it right China will become the number one economy. China century"
No, that's inevitable. Not avoidable.
It's important - Europe has at least 10 years start on the US when it comes to arrangements with the new China-led world order. Better get cracking...
14
@McLean123 China had the world's largest economy for centuries. Statistically it is simply regressing to the mean. Given China's long history, the people know that prosperity is not permanent, although lately the average Chinese tends to forget the centuries of decline prior to the recent upswing.
@McLean123
It's not inevitable. China is a totalitarian dictatorship that survives by stealing jobs and technology.
I believe in democracy. I believe in Our Constitutional Republic.
The "free trade" at any cost ideology that the Right has demanded for decades while they slashed investment in Americans and the USA is why we are here.
The way to win the future is with the Green New Deal that moves is into the 22nd century and Medicare for All which will save trillions in the second decade, just like it works in Europe.
The Right doesn't belong in the Constitution and never had. Go back and look at everything the Right has ever done, and it is against American Values and has always made things worse.
The 14th Amendment was ratified with a super majority. It made everyone born here an equal citizen under law. The response of the minority Right was Jim Crow: anticonstitutional state terrorism. Then the Supreme Court struck it down.
The Democratic passed Social Security which cut elderly parents in half. No more eating cat food. Republicans are still trying to destroy it.
Trump has a hotel in the Federal Post Office Building because Republicans are even trying to destroy the post office which is on the Constitution, so they can sell it off for parts to global carriers.
The Right has decimated the economy, with centrist Democrats compromising with them. GDP Growth is DOWN since 1980, not up.
Invest in the American worker. Invest in the USA.
1
Yes when inexperienced, untrained people are expected to make decisions and take actions--while having no idea what they're doing--things can be confusing and chaotic. It's a marvel, this busy-ness of non-professional loyalists buzzing around the central figure of a man himself chaotic, mentally unbalanced, even demented. So many of them are are invested in explaining his "meanings" and keeping his orders and acts from eventuating in disasters that even his fans would note. It's bizarre in the extreme, really. You have to go back to Caligula for this kind of thing.
8
Trump gets away with manipulating tariffs and the stock markets, because the GOP Senate sits on its hands and does nothing.
8
Technically a president is responsible for all the decisions made by the administration (the buck stops here), but one likes to think there is a team involved, smart people collaborating to collect all the required information, analyse all the options, weigh the pros and cons, weed out the mistakes, get to the best possible answer, which the president then simply announces. It is a process that shows respect for the people of America, recognizing the importance of the decisions that affect them, and the great responsibility it is to make those decisions.
But not with the Donald, that isn't his style. He personalizes everything, "I" this and "I" that. The thing of paramount importance, above all else, is that everyone knows he is the one making the calls, which is far more important than instilling confidence in the process of making the decision.
It is a joke.
6
The last story I recall said the US and China had agreed to roll back SOME tariffs, not ALL tariffs.
5
This is what happens when a reality show host is president. He will cave when the timing seems best for him personally.
5
"Conflicting signals...". Surely you jest. This is from the man who just said today, the House should not have PUBLIC hearings in the impeachment inquiry. Let that digest: The braying about close-door-fakery and due process.
Why anyone is even bothering to write about Trump's conflicts, is the conflict I am having- in reading about them.
7
I’m old enough to remember the days when a president would have been impeached by a Republican legislature for even attempting to implement such a radical tariff agenda.
Now, they’re the chief proponents. It makes me so sad that so many people are so easily manipulated. People wonder how Jonestown and Heaven’s Gate and stuff like that can happen. Then they go to a Trump rally and start yelling about foreign trade forgetting the fact that Republicans are the ones that opened trade to China and argued for free trade agreements in the first place.
10
China sees North Korea getting everything they want and giving up nothing, not even promises. They know Trump just wants a big show he can sell to his base. China doesn't have to give up anything of substance.
5
Trump's reconfirmation that he will continue to be tough on Chinese tariffs only shows how far China and the US are from an agreement. Trump acts like he has all the cards in his pronouncements about talks with China, but there may come a point in the not to distant future that China will throw up its collective hands and not deal with the arrogant Trump. Our economy is now number 2 behind China and trying to dictate terms to China will just not work. Tariffs have always hurt our economy and prices and the American people are paying for these negotiations. We need a cooperative agreement to protect patents and property rights, but will we get everything we want by trying to intimidate China? I suspect not and the American people will be stuck holding the bag as a price for Trump's incompetency.
1
How do you negotiate with a man whose word is worthless, whose thought processes are capricious, whose needs are many and whose idea of a good deal is winner takes all?
We know he's untrustworthy as do his foreign counterparts - but he has the might of the American market as his club - making the smart thing to do is play along. There are few if any other options.
His back and forth on tariff negotiations with China is likely an attempt to save face - confronted as he is by increasing defections from his ranks and what appears to be his inevitable, unavoidable impeachment. Bluster, threat and bully time is over - the time has come to put up or shut-up, preferably with a resignation to save the nation from the trauma an impeachment trial will bring.
2
This just stinks of market manipulation.
There is no reason, in the climate of uncertainty created by trump, that the clearly false announcements from the "trade negotiations" should cause confidence.
We see this over and again. The market gets some bad news and it floats down, then "good news" that can't be believed gives the market a shot in the arm.
We have seen this before
6
What Trump Organization profitable impact is Donald Trump hiding from the American people in his personal income tax returns and business accounting financial records arising from his occupation of the White House that is the real primary motivation for his tariff war with China?
By failing to declare, disclose and divest his personal assets into a blind trust you can't tell where Trump Mar-a-Lago ends and Trump Administration White House begins.
4
My question is how much money did trump and his cronies make short selling stocks? Roll back of tariffs imminent, stock market goes up.
Tariff talks souring, stock market tanks.
Why isn't this being investigated as manipulation of the market?
trump should be in jail, not president of the USA!!!
5
Trump cannot take a firm stand on anything for two reasons:
1) He does not understand any of the issues and
2) He is perpetually afraid of looking impotent
When will this cease, when will this end when will we have our country back?
6
Trump is running what amounts to a game of 3 card Monte. The art of the crooked deal. If the dealer decides you should win, you will win. If he wants you to lose, you will lose. Trump is the dealer and the dealer can't lose.
3
How many of the Trump family's cohorts are being given a heads up to the next capricious pendulum swing of the Insane Clown President's "Deal or No Deal" decisions?
7
I wonder how many Trump family members shorted the stock market before this announcement.
7
I think Trump’s “Trade War” is highly suspicious because it may be a way to create opportunities for corruption.
Fortunes can be made in the stock market if people know in advance what Trump will say about the “Trade War”. It could be worth a lot of money for people to get Tariffs lifted.
Another example is Ivanka got 5 trademarks from China days before Trump relaxed restrictions on ZTE.
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/may/28/ivanka-trump-won-china-trademarks-donald-trump-zte-reversal
5
I guess “we’ll see what happens.”
1
No matter how much people dislike China, this is one more reason why Trump is not a trustworthy business partner.
3
Who is running the White House? This man could not balance a check book as signaled by his six bankruptcies, let alone handle negotiations that leave the world economy on the brink. Trump is mentally incapable of running the White House and Mitch McConnell has used up all of his chips with regard to using Trump as a shill to stack the courts.
Time for the 25th Amendment to be inacted.
4
Why is the press promoting Trump's cliff-hangers?
Surely this should be in the paid for advertising section.
5
Is Chuck Schumer a Republican and Trumper? He sure sounds like one. He needs to go.
1
Hopefully the Chinese have hacked Trump"s cell phone and will be releasing embarrassing conversations Trump has had with Hannity and Carlson and will sink this man. It's their best option to finally crack his base.
2
How do Republican senators and congressmen live with themselves. They know he is a lunatic and unfit, yet they coddle him and pay homage.
2
So, another day, another lie. That is not surprising.
4
Trump needs a dog and pony show with plenty of photo-ops with the Chinese leadership. Flimflam posturing. The Chinese have no need for a photo-op for their people. Different cultures and political systems.
While I applaud the attempt to confront the Chinese on unfair trading practices tariff threats will eventually hurt US citizens more than the Chinese.
I fail to understand how reducing the trade deficit with China and simultaneously increasing the deficit with India, Vietnam and other cheap labor countries changes the trade imbalance equation. Cheap labor will attract capital and manufacturing.
16
The prospect of Trump wielding such power over the fate of the world economy is terrifying. It's like having The Three Stooges perform neurosurgery on a loved one.
68
@H. Clark
Happy to see a New York Long Islander realize what is really going on!!
3
Same old. I don't know what I'm doing so I can't say what I'm doing so I will just say that something is doing but I don't know what it is until I know what it is or what it isn't.
Updates to the next cliff-hanger coming soon!
46
Trump has been manipulating the markets with these promises and pullbacks for years. See who is profiting and throw them in jail.
48
Always lots of conflict and confusion. This is no way to lead.
23
Well, that didn’t take long. Less than a day after “0oo, we makin’ a deal with China, no more tariffs”. When is the stock market going to learn what everyone else already knows. Nothing the orange one says actually means anything. Words just spew out of his pie hole, and fumble off his thumbs on Twitter.
41
Are we not all fed up with this administrations lack of any coherence, any direction, any consistent messaging, all the lies, all the school-yard taunts.
This administration is a disaster, pulling this great Country down into the Trump/Republican sewer.
29
The Circus continues....
25
Elect a clown, expect a circus.
2
"But I have not agreed to anything." Gee, color me surprised.
23
You'd have to be nuts to make a deal with Trump. And the Chinese aren't nuts.
37
At what point will someone look into securities fraud re: trump and his sycophants? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?
29
And that the result when you have two parties that are known liars.
The pathetic part is one of them gets to be called "POTUS" and embarrass his nation on a daily basis.
6
Read my lips: Trump is a lousy negotiator. Only in a time with fake storytelling on social media can you get the impression that this guy has any negotiating skills.
14
For all the talk of how the us economy has benefitted from this persons decisions here is a clear example of how he and they do not and cannot understand the damage he and the GOP have inflicted on the economy
But pls....keep it up
Your incompetence shows each time you open your crude mouth
And it will show up Nov 3 2020
7
The headline lost me at "Trump Says"..
25
He loves to dangle things in front of people to keep all eyes on...himself.
Trump is a toxic narcissist. I defy anyone to prove otherwise.
17
As a high school kid I left Hong Kong more than 70 years ago and I am still here reading NYT about what's going on in China. Because China was so poor after WWII and needed American help and that was why I decided to go to the land of opportunities, America. Now 70 years later China is a competitor of the U.S. What happened? Are we that stupid and fooled by the Chinese? Why negotiate with them. We should tell China what to do. Not take orders from China. Are we so stupid?
3
@Tysons2019 We're just not in charge any more.
1
So, again, there is no story here.
5
@Slann , and there was no story yesterday, either. Why the NYT continues to report on things that Trump will inevitably reverse himself on within hours is beyond me.
The Art of Market and Media Manipulation....a new Presidential paperpack by America's #1 Fraudster.
Get your worthless copy today !
30
Trump is a joke. Despite his self promotion, Trump has demonstrated lousy, 5th rate negotiating skills. China will keep jerking his chain knowing how desperate he is for the appearance of a "win".
12
It doesn't really matter what Trump agrees to - he's a liar, never keeps his word, and will not hesitate to back out of a written agreement. Everyone knows it, including the Chinese. There's absolutely no point in making a "deal" with him.
18
I predict a quid pro quo offer to Pelosi: drop the impeachment and Trump will lift the tariffs.
4
Does Trump really know what he is doing or is he just playing a game with tariffs like he has done with every other decision he has made since he was inaugurated? Never has a more ignorant person had so much power over the world's economy and lives of so many people.
15
notice every few days the White House says they tentatively agreed with China but then no...but stocks rise
9
Why is this incompetent making decisions and announcing actions without input from our experienced advisors and Congress? He is NOT a king or a god. He needs to be impeached and his enablers thrown out with him!
13
I'm beginning to think Trump is really smart and the American people are the dummies. We get played everytime. Well, at least the media and Wall Street do. Another song this administration reminds me of: You Got Me Going in Circles.
2
This is the madness that republicans think is acceptable from the leader of our country? He is moody and petulant like a whinny teenager determined to get his way. You knew it would take Trump about 5 minutes to reverse course and go back to his failing strategy and this is the behavior that likely lead to his 4+ business bankruptcies. His tariff strategy has lead to $20 billion tariffs on China and that lead to $20 billion dollars extra burden on US consumers and destroyed the $26 billion dollar soy bean industry. Net China pays $0 dollars more and US citizens losses -$46 billion and counting. Too bad the "stable genius" can't do basic math.
9
@EPMD , oh c'mon, this is only another indication of what a brilliant strategist our genius leader really is! Only he knows the next move. What genius!!
Don’t know why the media even bothers reporting any of this anymore, until something concrete is signed. The rest is fluff, on both sides, even if they manage to put out the same statement.
3
Exactly what I pointed out yesterday.
Mr Flim Flam let it float for a day in the press... so he could stomp on it Friday.
It won't netotiate and he will not settle for anything even remotely resembling a compromise position between nations.
There will be no deal here.
1
Could someone please explain something to me. I know this sounds stupid or sarcastic, but it's a genuine question.
Is it not Congress that makes trade pacts? Is it not Congress that determines tariffs?
Was there an amendment to the Constitution passed a few years ago when I was out of the room?
5
@Mike492 Trade and tariffs are Congress's domain but Trump declared it a national emergency in order to wrest responsibility from Congress.
Not sure what Congress can do about it or if they have even bothered to challenge the grounds for the decision. But Congress has been giving away a great part of its responsibility to the executive branch going back decades, getting it back will be a fight - one worth having to uphold the separation of powers, checks and balances, the constitution and democratic ideals. Not sure if Congress feels the same way.
2
Come here, go away! Come here, go away! Can we all just start ignoring him completely, he’s a walking joke.
7
Raise your hand if you're not at all surprised by this!?!?
8
As usual, one hand doesn’t know what the other hand is doing. His trade negotiators must be very neurotic people.
39
@Robert M. Koretsky
I see this administration much more confused and conflicted than merely one hand not knowing what the other hand is going. I think it's more like conflicting body parts - left leg doesn't know or care what the right eye is hearing.
7
Of course he hasn't! 1) He doesn't want trade with China, 2) he wants a flat tax to cushion his tax cuts for the wealthy. Keep winning Trumpers! When he's got all your money, he'll take your land and build a wall over it to keep out the illegals!
4
Who got more fabulously wealthy than they already were, this time?
I refer to:
https://www.google.ca/amp/s/www.vanityfair.com/news/2019/10/the-mystery-of-the-trump-chaos-trades/amp
3
The final decisions will be made after Trump finishes counting up the donations to his re-election campaign, receipts from his hotels and any monies that might be under the table. President Xi should keep in mind that the man he is dealing with is no longer allowed to run, lead or even participate in charities anymore because he can no longer be trusted to not steal.
7
Of course! Of course, Trump would be inconsistent in his messaging! We just can't ever believe him to be reliable and stable.
4
This entire trade war is just Trump’s re-election campaign. Don’t you get it? By drumming up tension, anti-Chinese feeling will rise and help the Republicans. The Trump balancing act is raising tension with China while not let trade war and market jitter lower the stock market.
3
@AmateurHistorian
Yeah. but after a while people get tired of being jerked around, especially when it involves their money. Somebody is making money off these ups and downs and it isn't most of us.
2
Too little, too late.
China has already signed a trade agreement that includes something like 30 nations. This is their equivalent to the TPP that Trump got rid of as soon as he took office. China is in a stronger position now and will take their business elsewhere.
Trump wants to pound the Chinese into the ground and emerge with total victory, whatever that is. Won't happen. China will out maneuver Trump at every step of the way.
China is investing heavily in AI. Frontline just aired a show about their progress. In a very few years, they won't need our technology. They are also investing heavily in electric vehicles. China plays longball and invests in the future. Trump digs coal.
205
Exactly, @Bruce Rozenblit. Those of us who have worked in China or with China-based tech companies for the last 15+ years have had a front-row seat to the emergence of China's indigenous innovation.
Imperfect as it was, the TPP acknowledged the trend and recognized the need to marshal allies to confront the challenge. Not surprisingly, China's new Trade Agreement co-opts the strategy to fashion alliances that advance its global influence.
Meanwhile, with startling ignorance and naivete, as well as signature bluster, the Trump Administration continues to confront China with a 1980s mindset.
For a man and Administration that operate like a daily Reality Show, they’re impervious to the realities unfolding before their very eyes. Frontline's excellent program offered a snippet.
34
Trump keeps Wall Street on the seesaw in the playground. And have financiers finally wised up? Apparently not since they're now predicting the Dow will drop 25% if Trump isn't re-elected. Oh please!
3
No wonder we now hear through the anonymous whistleblower's book that the man's entire staff considered walking off the job en mass. Everyday must be a terror observing such erratic behavior up close. Meanwhile out here on the front line costs have gone up on everything. A real winning strategy.
2
This will go down in history as the Administration of conflicting signals. Trump is a cacophony of swirling sound which only makes sense to his core voters.
Today, for instance, after a week of wanting open hearings, Trump has reversed himself and wants closed door hearings. If you had a car and you continuously shifted from drive to reverse, you would ruin the transmission.
Poor Jim Jordon, he must constantly wrestle with which message he has to put out.
33
@Babel
And with Bloomberg considering running, I think Trump will now display even further crazy behavior.
4
"I never like to talk about thing before we have them." Impeachment? Name calling? Right. But if we do make a deal, I would like it in the farm country so I can take the credit.
1
We must disentangle from China. They can not continue to spy and steal from us. This is economic warfare of their doing. That’s the only think that matters right now.
2
trump loves to pull wall street's chain! just a few of his words can cause markets to tumble or rise in a flash. it's a power check, instant gratification, a boost to his ego, and it distracts from whichever of his scandals is boiling over at the time. what will he do tomorrow?
So yesterday when everyone was cheering and the stock markets were soaring I posted what Navarro said to Lou Dobbs. Today, stocks are down and Trump is ruling out rollbacks. Someone is making money nefariously and really, I wouldn't put it past the Trump administration who is flogging everything to make a miraculous stock market for his reelection. I am no economist but this stinks to high heaven. Corruption thy name is Trump.
8
Maybe China should promise to investigate the Bidens.
2
I certainly hope someone ( SEC, US Attorney, State securities regulators) has opened an investigation into what is looking more and more like market manipulation. Trump's constant reversing course on China tariffs has the markets on a roller coaster ride. Are insiders being tipped?
35
Trump was wrong to start a trade war in this manner in the first place, and now we're supposed to credit him for partially undoing it? Meanwhile, economic damage gets buried in the overall buoyant economy and there are no repercussions from the farmers, manufacturers and consumers who Trump harmed?
23
@North
The arsonist wants credit for calling the fire brigade.
7
Gosh. I wonder how much he and the kids made on this latest little manipulation.
36
I tend to think China has US over a barrel more than we have them over one.
We'll see if Trump actually listens to his advisers who have warned him "that the tariffs, which are inflicting pain on farmers and manufacturers, could hurt him politically as he heads into re-election."
He certainly didn't listen to key advisers when deciding to pull U.S. Troops out of the Middle East.
We cannot forget that Trump has “great and unmatched wisdom” not to mention being a “very stable genius”.
What could possibly go wrong with the U.S economy?
18
If Senate Republicans would stop criticizing the House Inquiry and do their oversight duties in regards to Trump's trade actions maybe the country would know what is going on. For a group that couldn't complain enough about Obama's executive actions they seem overly timid or is it afraid to say something about this President actions.
22
@Michael Kelly
Perhaps they're getting a piece of the action.
2
The word of the day is "rollback." Has anyone else noticed that every time Trump learns a new word or phrase he repeats it over and over again?
15
Conflicting signals from within the White House as to whether any tariffs on China will be rolled back. Glad to see that despite all the impeachment talk, the White House still is operating normally.
12
Sometimes I wonder if Trump is stock manipulating -- drive stocks up with talks of a trade deal. When they look like they've stabilized (or are dropping) announce that the deal is off. Rinse, repeat ...
16
I read somewhere that Trump has "blotted out the sun. I believe that. I also believe that one way to stop him is to stop all reporting on anything with his name in the title.. Bad publicity is better than no publicity. I wonder what it would be like to totally ignore him, given his hunger to be in the public's eye at all (all) times.
9
What a fool. The Chinese will read this and go back to bed for a couple of years until Trump is long gone. I've negotiated with the Chinese and while I find them fair they are not stupid.
28
@Tom
"The Chinese will read this and go back to bed for a couple of years until Trump is long gone. I've negotiated with the Chinese and while I find them fair they are not stupid."
Excellent observation. The Chinese are also incredibly patient; far more so than the fantastically ignorant Trump. Whatever they used to buy from America they can obtain from any number of other countries eager to sell.
6
More half-baked economic policy decisions from the colossally incompetent trump administration. Media should start putting "economic adviser" in quotes when referring to these rank amateurs.
26
If Trump rolls back the tariffs, he has LOST. China would have no incentive to carry out the terms of the agreement. They will slow walk the protection of IP and the creation of a level playing field. We will have gained nothing in this negotiation. But what do you expect from someone who talks about winning but folds in the end.
7
China’s government strikes me as one that thinks carefully before issuing public statements. If you agree, the question then becomes: who benefits from Mr. Trump’s repeated stops and starts? Who is profiting?
11
@Peter - stock market players playing both sides of the up and down swings every time Trump changes his mind...which is frequently. Buy in the pullback, sell on the upswing.
9
Babies have their diapers changed with less frequency than Donald Trump's mind. My favorite is where he contradicts himself in a single sentence.
Yet, he has the support of 80 percent of Republicans.
I hear people say, "What happened to Lindsay Graham? Or, what happened to Mitch McConnell?"
The correct answer is "Nothing. The only difference is that now you see in the light who they have always been in the darkness."
Donald Trump hasn't corrupted the Republican Party. He's only pulled back the curtain on their pre-existing corruption.
This comes from someone who has never been a member of a political party and was as likely to vote for Republicans as Democrats.
Not anymore and, President Trump, for that, I thank you.
51
@Didier
I really like this comment Didier.
You always have an incredible way with words.
My favorite line is "He's only pulled back the curtain on their pre-existing corruption." Priceless! I love it.
10
Trump's enablers have already written the self-congratulatory press release for whatever bad deal Trump ultimately agrees to. All that remains is to fill in a few blanks to refer to some specifics of the deal, which Trump will not comprehend.
9
My father owns a company which mainly sources their products from China, mostly stationary art products such as notebooks and calendars. He’s already had to lay off 2 people because of these tarifs. This trade war is completely one sided and meant to increase government revenue after Trump padded the pockets of his own wealth and the wealth of his friends. These actions have very real consequences and small businesses are paying the ultimate price. But we shouldn’t really expect anything more from this administration.
51
Every week, there are stories about Trump and the tariffs. First, he will...then, he won’t.
Can anyone realistically doubt that he and his friends are manipulating the markets? Where are the regulators like the SEC, or is the SEC corrupt like so many others?
64
New Flash!!! Confusion at the White House as to whether all or any tariffs will be rolled back. It seems there is a lack of coordination between the U.S. Trade Team and the only person allowed to make decisions and then talk about them. More to follow after he finishes watching TV.
27
Trump should realize the only thing he has going for him is the market and the economy. Lose those, and Republican wallets, through continued hard ball and all of a sudden President Pence doesn’t sound so bad. The Chinese realize this, so expect eventual capitulation. The tell will be with Peter Navarro resigns.
2
@Dan
All these ups and downs are so frequent that most small investors will lose track of what they've lost overall. Meanwhile, somebody is taking advantage of the market shifts. I predict that this will go on until we're closer to the election and then the Great Negotiator will pull out a deal that will be rescinded the day after the election. It will be very bad and a Democrat will have to clean it up.
This is just the kind of uncertainty that the American economy needs to thrive!
7
@Daddy Frank Thanks for the belly laugh!
1
”China would like to get somewhat of a rollback, not a complete rollback, because they know I won’t do it”
The main point is that Trump can't present a clear, coherent statement - about anything.
21
It’s almost as if he’s just making it up as he goes rather than having a concrete plan in mind.
20
Almost?
6
I knew he would mess this up. Just knew it. Our ever predictable Chief Executive, where disruption and obfuscation is the name of the game 24/7.
12
Trump leads the stock market to optimism then dashes it. He prefers to blame Jerome Powell rather than himself. Never wrong, never wrong. What a desperate child he is.
6
Trump will roll back his tariffs because it is hurting the US and China will not be bullied by him. So it is Yes No until he works out a way to spin another Lose into an imaginary win.
11
Stock market manipulation? Absolutely!
The most corrupt administration in US history.
73
In his improptu press conference this morning the president again falsely stated that the US was taking in "billions" of dollars as a result of his arbitrary tariffs on Chinese imports. The government isn't taking in ANY money from these tariffs. Consumers and businesses are paying them out of their own pockets.
Why do members of the press let this go unchallenged? Not challenging him is almost as bad as his lies.
52
The absurdity of "I will decide" on tariffs is beyond belief. The man is way out of control. Not to mention the "trade war" with China, which is 98% in Trump's head alone. Enough! Out!
18
Is the SEC keeping and eye on trades made by Trumps friends and family? Asking for a friend.
32
The main point is: it continues to be all about President Trump.
Certainly not about the economy, relations with the Chinese, or last of all the American people.
Trump and Trump alone is the center of all attention.
That is and remains “The Trump Doctrine.”
112
Manipulation. Drop a hint that things are going well on Monday, let it run up the market until Thursday and state the opposite and take in the cash. Not hard to time the market if you can swing it.
167
@the downward spiral. And make even more money on the back end by shorting the market....
4
I remember a conservative businessman friend once telling me Obama was “creating uncertainty” for the business community. We don’t talk politics anymore, but I wonder how he feels now.
153
@LIChef Trump is Chaos. And Trump in charge of our economy is Chaos in action.
18
@LIChef
He and his ilk are irrelevant
Now
Listening to their pretzel logic will
give anyone migraines
6
What he really meant is that Trump’s insiders have not yet converted enough of their short positions into longs.
103
Reading the Chinese news sites, Premier Xi is going to demand that Trump rolls back tariffs before China makes any concessions and the reasons are simple. Trump is completely untrustworthy and unpredictable. Based on a "gut feel" whim, Trump will reverse course at any time. Trump supporters may be easily fooled, but not China's premier.
Xi also recognizes Trump is desperate for a win to avoid impeachment. Therefore, Trump will agree to just about anything and try to spin it as a victory.
In fact, we are no closer to resolving the intellectual property issue than before. Worse yet, Trump's malfeasance, and inability to cooperate with America's allies made matters worse. Italy, Britain and France are making separate deals with China.
China's Belt and Road mission was also helped by Trump ignorance of foreign affairs and untrustworthy demonstrations. Why would any country do an infrastructure deal with America when they can get better terms and a reliable partnership with China?
As a retired marine, I am appalled by Trump's destruction of my country and outraged by my fellow republicans who keep him in office. The last three years could have been used to create order and address Climate Change, but instead we suffered a world class carnival fool whose only interest is renting hotels rooms so he can line his pockets.
244
@bond trader - you should have changed horses during the George W. Bush Administration. Trump hasn't done 1/2 the damage (to his credit) that the George W. Bush Administration did. Remember the Great Recession? What did Bush do on Climate Change?
6
@bond trader
Marine, you are spot on!!!
Thank you for your service and patriotism.
7
With Mr. Trump everything changes
like New England weather. He doesn't
understand that the uncertainty he creates discourages investment. His
faith in acting tough to get his way
is a total failure. He tried to remove
Maduro of Venezuela, he is still there.
He abrogated Iran Nuclear deal imposing tough sanctions assuming Iran
will come begging to renegotiate and
he will dictate the terms of capitulation
hasn't happened. He keeps repeating
that China want the deal more than he
does is the same flawed thinking. Perhaps the most ignorant president ever, he has no understanding of other peoples history, culture, mode of
thinking, political pressure,etc. China
has its own hawks just their counterpart
here. If Mr. Xi makes excessive concessions he will risk his own job.
Mr Trump penchant to look good
and accomplishing something that
former presidents didn't is the big
hindrance to any serious agreement
with NKorea, Iran, China, Europe,etc.
22
Mr. Trump: DO NOT CAPITULATE! Your approach to China is greatly appreciated by the US voting public and is precisely what has been needed for many years. China cannot be allowed to steal from the US and the civilized West any longer. The Chinese totalitarian leadership must be brought to its knees and taught a very harsh lesson. You are just the person to deliver it. Please do not back down, the American shopping public will adjust to any minor price increases we must endure to purchase Chinese-made junk.
3
@David H The TPP would have done more and cost less uncertainty for businesses.
25
@David H
"Junk" like I Phones, PCs, TV's, Clothing, food, sporting goods, tools, etc..
All the stuff we crave and can't live without on a daily basis....
So much winning!
10
So you’d rather by junk from Thailand, India, and any of the other low cost labor countries where everything is currently made, cause it ain’t made here anymore.
5
This why US foreign policy, and even domestic policy for that matter, have been a joke under Trump. He keeps markets in turmoil, forces businesses to operate in an environment of uncertainty, unsettles our trade allies, and keeps everyone in general suspense because he really doesn't know what to do with trade, nor does he allow professionals to do their jobs. He's inept, indecisive, has no business acumen or intellectual ability to capture abstract ideas that govern trade and monetary policies.
The US economy is running mostly on consumer spending, and seems headed eventually to some type of correction that will blow up the deficit even more. By then people will realize the emptiness of our economic policies.
43
When you see a chance to be punitive, take it.
1
Right. He needs to come up with that $2M for his latest fine for misusing foundation money. With this statement the stock market will fall. Then his minions will buy low and in a week he'll say "just kidding, we will" and the market will rise. Boom. Millions made. We're being played folks.
81
“I never like to talk about things before we have them”...except during any of the last 10,000-plus twitter storms, when everyone is caught up short.
the chinese may not yet dominate the world in producing oscillators, but they have gotten pretty good in learning how to read this yes-i-will/no-i-won't kind of diplomacy.
30
Which way Trump swings on the China tariffs is going to depend a lot on how the polls are trending.
Among farmers Trump's halo is deeply tarnished and he may not be able to count them as "in the bag" in November 2020.
18
@ernieh1 How will a Democratic president be able to help American farmers when he/she will be left holding the bag of organic fertilizer? Any new president will need hip wading boots to slog through the international trade mess.
3
@ernieh1 American Farmers are notorious for supporting the Republican Party eve if it cost them the farm. You have to understand that American Farmers only hate welfare that goes to non-farmers. Out local congressman, who is a mutimillionaire rice farmer get reelected over time. He, by the way get a lot of Federal handouts such as irrigation water as belief costs, price supports if the world price of rice falls, and a very low minimum wage for agricultural workers.
5
I know when the ink is dry then report the deal until then, be quiet,
13
I’m starting to think that Trump is woefully incompetent and doesn’t have a clue about presidenting.
Yes, this IS extreme sarcasm.
59
"I never like to talk about things before we have them." Right.
55
Like an enormous baby playing with the economy like it is his toy.
53
I keep hearing that old song:"First you say you do, and then you don't......"
24
It's so funny how Wall Street takes the bait even though Trump has sunk trade deals over and over and over again.
38
@Sherry You're thinking about the OLD Wall Street...the Wall Street from the 60's: The Wall Street that USED TO cross "Main Street'
That fabled Intersection...no longer exists.
Today, the people on Wall Street make $$$Money$$$ when the graphs go in EITHER Direction. High or Low. Short or Long.
The Bank Accounts of Wall Street Firms have a perpetual smile. Fluctuation is catnip to them.
Main Street Americans need to stop believing that 'What's Good for Wall Street is Good for America'.
Not Necessarily so these days...
12
@Sherry ..Alas, Wall Street makes its profits on the "churn"--the back and forth sloshing of money as the markets fluctuate. If you are running a real business, then the unpredictability is terrible, but for the Wall Street traders, it's just another way to make commissions and profits.
22
The manufactured crisis and ups and downs of the tariffs constitute a manipulation of the stock markets on an epic level.
268
@Bruce Egert Another impeachable offense? It would be if Trump weren't so stupid. Trump is chaos. But he is incapable of making his chaotic impulsive behavior work to his financial success. That is why he has gone into bankruptcy multiple times. Perhaps without even trying he will bankrupt the American economy just as he did his own businesses.
7
@Bruce Egert
I think he should be investigated by the SEC. Who knows if he's manipulating the stock market for his crony friends?
6
@Bruce Egert
Manufactured ups and downs indeed, I predict that these tariffs will be lifted throughout the first part of 2020 to improve the economic outlook in November for Trump's re-election.
8
Conflicting signals? From Trump's White House? Did not see that coming.
93
Trump is negotiating on behalf of America like a bad reality TV personality. He undermines every bit of progress, all credibility, any certainty that what was accomplished yesterday will still exist the next day. He is an abysmal representative for the American economy. This is a game to him, he's happy to gamble with other people's livelihoods.
82
Trump’s foreign policies: Mess things up, try to roll back the mess, announce victory, repeat.
177