Steel Trade Wars

"This is a very important book."--Martin Wolf, Financial TimesA provocative look at how today's trade conflicts are caused by governments promoting the interests of elites at the expense of workers Longlisted for the 2020 Financial Times & McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award "Worth reading for [the authors'] insights into the history of trade and finance."--George Melloan, Wall Street Journal Trade disputes are usually understood as conflicts between countries with competing national interests, but as Matthew C. Klein and Michael Pettis show, they are often the unexpected result of domestic political choices to serve the interests of the rich at the expense of workers and ordinary retirees. Klein and Pettis trace the origins of today's trade wars to decisions made by politicians and business leaders in China, Europe, and the United States over the past thirty years. Across the world, the rich have prospered while workers can no longer afford to buy what they produce, have lost their jobs, or have been forced into higher levels of debt. In this thought-provoking challenge to mainstream views, the authors provide a cohesive narrative that shows how the class wars of rising inequality are a threat to the global economy and international peace--and what we can do about it.

The multi-front trade war, which started with solar panels and washing machines, quickly expanded to additional battles: the 232 action on Aluminum and Steel imports, Intellectual Property, Autos, and Immigration. As a result, retaliatory tariffs were imposed and the flow of global trade the world once knew was changed. Headlines reporting the China tariffs "on hold," "truces announced" as well as threats of additional tariffs being imposed, continue to feed the uncertainty which would send the markets to historic highs and dramatic selloffs.So how can one get a sense of the true status of trade and the good faith being pledged by countries like China?Through the trade flows!With ninety percent of the world's economy moved by maritime transport, the ocean highway is the best way for anyone to gauge the status of trade talks as well as monitor the flow of trade. Remember, the two phrases your mom said when you were a teen: "talk is cheap" and "actions speak louder than words?" Well, when it comes to the world of shipping, that is the action being taken. Best-selling author Lori Ann LaRocco takes readers inside the world of global trade and shows us: Containers and tankers don't lie.Let's cut through the political rhetoric and see what the tea leaves of maritime are telling us, as well as the strategies some business leaders are employing to navigate the trade wars.

A prize-winning, magisterial history of World War I from the perspective of the defeated Central Powers For the Central Powers, the First World War started with high hopes for an easy victory. But those hopes soon deteriorated as Germany's attack on France failed, Austria-Hungary's armies suffered catastrophic losses, and Britain's ruthless blockade brought both nations to the brink of starvation. The Central powers were trapped in the Allies' ever-tightening Ring of Steel. In this compelling history, Alexander Watson retells the war from the perspective of its losers: not just the leaders in Berlin and Vienna, but the people of Central Europe. The war shattered their societies, destroyed their states, and imparted a poisonous legacy of bitterness and violence. A major reevaluation of the First World War, Ring of Steel is essential for anyone seeking to understand the last century of European history.

For many years, the United States has had established trade agreements with other countries to regulate the even flow of goods and maintain a healthy economy. But many of these entrenched trade agreements have now been upended, and with new tariffs being implemented, the global economic relationships between countries are changing. Will new tariffs help or hurt the United States and its traditional allies? How will U.S. industries be affected? With newer, more severe tariffs in place, bringing tariff retaliation from other trading partners, the future of trade relationships is shifting and uncertain.

A Foreign Affairs Best Book of the Year: “Tells the history of American trade policy . . . [A] grand narrative [that] also debunks trade-policy myths.” —Economist Should the United States be open to commerce with other countries, or should it protect domestic industries from foreign competition? This question has been the source of bitter political conflict throughout American history. Such conflict was inevitable, James Madison argued in the Federalist Papers, because trade policy involves clashing economic interests. The struggle between the winners and losers from trade has always been fierce because dollars and jobs are at stake: depending on what policy is chosen, some industries, farmers, and workers will prosper, while others will suffer. Douglas A. Irwin’s Clashing over Commerce is the most authoritative and comprehensive history of US trade policy to date, offering a clear picture of the various economic and political forces that have shaped it. From the start, trade policy divided the nation—first when Thomas Jefferson declared an embargo on all foreign trade and then when South Carolina threatened to secede from the Union over excessive taxes on imports. The Civil War saw a shift toward protectionism, which then came under constant political attack. Then, controversy over the Smoot-Hawley tariff during the Great Depression led to a policy shift toward freer trade, involving trade agreements that eventually produced the World Trade Organization. Irwin makes sense of this turbulent history by showing how different economic interests tend to be grouped geographically, meaning that every proposed policy change found ready champions and opponents in Congress. Deeply researched and rich with insight and detail, Clashing over Commerce provides valuable and enduring insights into US trade policy past and present. “Combines scholarly analysis with a historian’s eye for trends and colorful details . . . readable and illuminating, for the trade expert and for all Americans wanting a deeper understanding of America’s evolving role in the global economy.” —National Review “Magisterial.” —Foreign Affairs

For many years, the United States has had established trade agreements with other countries to regulate the even flow of goods and maintain a healthy economy. But many of these entrenched trade agreements have now been upended, and with new tariffs being implemented, the global economic relationships between countries are changing. Will new tariffs help or hurt the United States and its traditional allies? How will U.S. industries be affected? With newer, more severe tariffs in place, bringing tariff retaliation from other trading partners, the future of trade relationships is shifting and uncertain.

The Research Handbook on Trade Wars presents an informative and in-depth account of the origins, dynamics, and implications of trade wars, which are growing both in scale and scope in today’s increasingly interdependent global economy. Providing the frameworks necessary for understanding the political and economic logics of trade wars, this Handbook will be a valuable source of reference for researchers, government officials, businesses, and post-graduate students interested in international political economy, international economics, economic statecraft, public policy, and international relations.