Are trade deficits bad for an economy?

Mar 6, 2018
President Donald Trump was back on the topic of trade today. Taking questions at the White House, he said that the United States “has been taken advantage of” on trade. And he doubled down on his promise to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. They are needed, he said, because of trade deficits. But […]

Texas could take a big hit if tariffs are introduced

Mar 6, 2018
President Donald Trump’s planned tariffs on steel and aluminum would affect businesses in many part of the nation. Some states, though, would be affected more than others. A paper published today by  the Tax Foundation criticizes the president’s plans and says thatTexas would  be hit hardest if tariffs were imposed. How exactly? Click the audio […]

Trump trade tariffs could save some jobs, endanger others

Mar 5, 2018
Approximately 140,000 Americans now work in primary steel and aluminum production — down from approximately 230,000 in 2000, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Meanwhile, according to Moody’s Analytics, more than 6 million Americans work in industries that use steel and aluminum to make other products, such as motor vehicles, aerospace, construction and metal […]

How seriously should the world take this tariff talk?

Mar 5, 2018
The tariffs President Donald Trump has been talking about could ignite a trade war.
Major stock indexes plunged following President Donald Trump's announcement that he was imposing a 25 percent tariff on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum. 
Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images

Are we moving away from a global free market?

Mar 2, 2018
We look at how tariffs could affect current trade deals after Trump's surprise announcement this week.
President Trump participates in a meeting with leaders of the steel and aluminum industries at the White House on March 1.
Win McNamee/Getty Images

Steel broke Pittsburgh’s heart once. It won’t happen again

Mar 2, 2018
The Trump administration’s decision to slap stiff tariffs on imported aluminum and steel won’t make much difference to Pittsburgh. Nearly all the steel jobs in the city now are behind a desk. Click the audio player above to hear the full story. 

Trump’s trade wars tweet theory

Mar 2, 2018
President Donald Trump tweeted that “trade wars are good, and easy to win,” adding that “when we are down $100 billion with a certain country and they get cute, don’t trade any more-we win big. It’s easy!” So, if you play that out a bit, looking at one of the countries we currently trade with, […]

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A helpful guide to trade terminology

Mar 2, 2018
Definitions for a few common terms you may hear in the debate over the recently announced steel and aluminium trade tariffs.
The World Trade Organization, headquartered in Geneva, acts like a referee. 

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Fabrice Coffrini/AFP/Getty Images

Steelworkers want a crackdown on "cheaters" in the global steel industry

Mar 2, 2018
The international president of the United Steelworkers says we're already in a trade war.
Tom Mihalek/Getty Images

U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs could draw swift retaliation

Mar 1, 2018
In announcing the tariffs today, President Trump said they are necessary for national security.