Hey there! Have you ever traded snacks with your friends at school? Maybe you swapped your chocolate bar for a bag of chips. Trading can be fun and helps everyone get what they like! 🍫🍟
Now, imagine if one friend started charging extra for their snacks. If you wanted their cookies, you’d have to give them two candies instead of one. That extra cost is a bit like a tariff—a tax that countries put on things they buy from other countries.
The United States has been putting tariffs on goods from other countries, hoping that this will help US businesses and protect jobs. But is this working out the way they planned?
What Are Tariffs, Anyway?
Tariffs are like adding a price tag to things coming into a country. If a country puts a tariff on toys from another country, those toys become more expensive to buy. The idea is to make people buy local toys instead. 🎲🧸
Why Some People Think Tariffs Aren’t So Great
Many experts believe that too many tariffs can cause problems. Imagine if all your friends didn’t like that one friend charging extra for snacks. They might start trading with each other instead, leaving that friend out.
Professor Yuqing Xing from Tokyo says that if the USA keeps using tariffs, it might end up alone in global trade. Other countries might decide to trade without the USA, making new friends and deals. 🤝
The Costs of Tariffs
Tariffs can make things more expensive for everyone. Studies have shown that tariffs have cost the USA jobs and money. For example, one report said that the trade war cost the US economy nearly 300,000 jobs! That’s a lot of people. 😯
Christine McDaniel, who used to work in the US government, worries that tariffs might mess up how countries trade with each other. If countries can’t trust that trade rules will stay the same, they might look for new trading partners.
Making New Friends
Because of these tariffs, some countries are making new trade groups without the USA. For example:
- The European Union has made trade deals with Japan and Canada. 🇪🇺🇯🇵🇨🇦
- The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a big trade group in Asia that doesn’t include the USA. It covers about 30% of the world’s people and money! 🌏
Professor Warwick Powell from Australia says that if the USA steps back, other countries will create new ways to trade. This could mean the USA misses out on big opportunities.
Why Working Together Matters
In our connected world, countries rely on each other for lots of things—just like friends sharing snacks or helping each other with homework. If a country tries to go it alone, it might find it harder to get what it needs.
So, will tariffs make the USA feel left out in global trade? Only time will tell. But many people believe that working together is better for everyone. 🌐❤️
What do you think? How can countries cooperate to make sure everyone benefits?
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
