The U.S. trade deficit widened in 2018 to a 10-year high of $621 billion, bucking President Donald Trump’s pledges to reduce it, as tax cuts boosted domestic demand for imports while the strong dollar and retaliatory tariffs weighed on exports.
Trump--who has no idea what “trade deficit” actually means--pledged to reduce ours, repeatedly criticizing it when he took office: “That’s ridiculous and it’s unacceptable.” Then, ignoring the advice of literally every single economist and independent expert--including his own White House economic advisor--the Ignoramus-in-Chief imposed massive tariffs and started trade wars not only with China but also with our own U.S. allies, costing us hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of U.S. jobs in the process.
The result of Trump’s brilliant strategy?
“The annual deficit in goods and services increased by $68.8 billion, or 12.5 percent.”
“The December gap jumped from the prior month to $59.8 billion, also a 10-year high and wider than the median estimate of economists.”
“For goods only, the U.S. deficit with the world surged to a record $891.3 billion in 2018 from $807.5 billion the prior year. The merchandise deficits with Mexico and the European Union also hit records.”
What about China?
“The merchandise-trade deficit with China -- the principal target of Trump’s trade war -- hit a record $419.2 billion in 2018.”
“The trade war boosted the trade deficit with China: merchandise exports to the Asian nation fell $9.6 billion last year, while imports rose $34 billion.”
And whose fault is it?
“His [Trump’s] attacks and threats to impose tariffs on trading partners from China to the EU has also contributed to the slowdown in those economies and therefore their demand for American goods.”
“The tariffs he [Trump] threatened and then imposed on Chinese imports caused a rush by importers to get ahead of the new duties that fueled an increase in incoming traffic at West Coast ports last year. The retaliatory tariffs Trump provoked from China also hit major U.S. agricultural exports such as soybeans: shipments of that item fell $4 billion last year.”
