Trade Talks

108: Making Services Trade Great

01 Nov 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Services trade gets no respect. The release of the WTO's World Trade Report 2019 gave us a chance to fix that.

107: Bombed Embassies and Document Leaks – How China Got into the WTO

24 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Was letting China join the WTO a mistake? Paul Blustein describes fraught negotiations with America that culminated in its entry.

106: Trump's Mini-Deal with China

14 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Jenny Leonard explains President Trump's October 11 announcement, as well as what it is like reporting daily on the trade war.

105: Aircraft Subsidy Disputes: How These Tariffs Are Different

07 Oct 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The WTO authorizes new US retaliatory tariffs on EU imports in one of the biggest and longest-running formal disputes in history.

104: How to Hit Currency Manipulators and Fight the Strong Dollar

30 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Explore past US efforts to counter countries with undervalued currencies, as well as two controversial proposals to do so today.

103: US-China Trade War from the Trenches

25 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The annual US-China Business Council survey of members paints an interesting picture of American companies operating in China.

102: Is Trump Beating the Chinese Economy?

18 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Nicholas Lardy explains how the Chinese economy is faring thus far during the trade war.

101: Huawei, National Security, and the Trade War

16 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Yuan Yang explains the Chinese telecom equipment maker's role in the US-China trade war and concerns over national security.

100: Sneaking Up on a No-Deal Brexit

12 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Anand Menon joins to update developments on Britain's plan to leave the European Union.

99: The Surprising Story of the US Trade Deficit with South Korea

06 Sep 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Kadee Russ explains why the US trade imbalance with South Korea expanded after their trade agreement went into effect.

98: What's Wrong with Germany's Trade Surplus?

28 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Jeromin Zettelmeyer explains Germany's export competitiveness and why concerns over its trade surplus derive from somewhere else.

97: Watching China's Human Rights

22 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Sophie Richardson joins Keynes and Bown in a wide-ranging conversation about heightened concerns over human rights in China.

96: Trump's Next China Tariffs and Fears in the Global Economy

16 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain Trump's rollout of tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese imports and new evidence of global economic turmoil.

95: Is China a Currency Manipulator?

09 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain the controversy surrounding President Trump's decision to designate China a currency manipulator.

94: The Fed and the Trade War, with Adam Posen

03 Aug 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Adam Posen explains why the US Federal Reserve is suddenly cutting interest rates and what that has to do with President Trump's trade war.

93: US Trade Policy Before Trump, with Ambassador Michael Froman

19 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Former USTR Michael Froman joins to discuss how the Obama administration tackled China and the World Trade Organization.

92: Japan and South Korea: Old Wounds, New Trade Fight

15 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Dukgeun Ahn joins to explain how Japan's threat to limit exports to South Korea involves issues much deeper than smartphone trade.

91: Can Trade Adjustment Assistance Work?

04 Jul 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ben Hyman joins to discuss whether an American program actually helps workers hurt by trade.

90: Trade policy the Asian way, with Mari Pangestu

12 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The former Indonesian trade minister discusses trade deals – from ASEAN to RCEP to the GSP – the trade war, and more.

89: The Migration Crisis Behind Trump's Mexico Tariff Threat

06 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Gordon Hanson joins to explain the roots of the migration emergency at both the US and Mexican southern borders.

88: Trump-Mexico Trade War Cheat Sheet

01 Jun 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss Trump's national emergency declaration and potential tariffs on $350 billion of imports from Mexico.

87: Trump Shifts His National Security Threats (Again)

20 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain Trump's latest trade action on cars and implications of his partial removal of steel and aluminum tariffs.

86: When Is Tariff Revenue Bad Tax Revenue?

17 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Lucie Gadenne (University of Warwick, IFS) joins Keynes and Bown to explain when and why some countries use import tariffs as an important source of t...

85: Trump-China Negotiating Dramatics and Even More Tariffs

12 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown update the sudden change in US-China trade negotiations and implications of President Trump's tariff escalation.

84: Brexit, British Politics, and European Parliamentary Elections

07 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Duncan Robinson joins to update Brexit, cleavages in British political parties, and 2019 elections to the European Parliament.

83: Tariffs for Sale and Identity Politics

02 May 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Gene Grossman joins to discuss how political economists explain trade protectionism.

82: How Big Is the USMCA? It's Uncertain

27 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss the US government report and economic impact assessment of the potential NAFTA replacement.

81: National Security and Trade – The Fear of Imitation

18 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Mona Pinchis-Paulsen joins to discuss the origins and history of using national security threats to justify trade restrictions.

80: Zeroing: The Biggest WTO Threat You've Never Heard Of (#45)

09 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain how a tiny part of US antidumping tariff calculations threatens the entire trading system.

79: A President Explains Mexican Trade

06 Apr 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Ernesto Zedillo joins to discuss 40 years of Mexico's trade, the impact of import substitution policies, NAFTA, and the USMCA.

78: Trade Talks Does Its Taxes

31 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Kimberly Clausing joins Keynes and Bown to discuss today's economic and policy challenges in taxing multinational companies.

77: Happy Tariffversary

24 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss new research on the economics and politics behind President Trump's tariffs and the resulting retaliation.

76: Trump versus India: Fighting over Which Poor Countries Are Special

10 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

The Trump administration pulled India and Turkey from the US Generalized System of Preference, a program that offers zero tariffs to imports from poor...

75: A US-China Farm Subsidy Fight at the WTO

03 Mar 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Not to be overshadowed by the Trump-China trade war, the WTO issues an important legal ruling on Chinese subsidies. Soumaya Keynes and Chad Bown descr...

74: Trade Talks Tough – Sanctions on North Korea (#14)

28 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown replay their November 2017 interview with Marcus Noland about one of the most closed economies in the world.

73: Soybeans and the Trade War Fallout

23 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain the upheaval in American and global soybean markets stemming from the US-China trade conflict.

72: Richard Baldwin on Disruption, Technology and Trade

14 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Richard Baldwin joins Keynes and Bown to discuss the past and future of globalization, new technologies, and social upheaval.

71: Money Matters for Trade

07 Feb 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Kalina Manova joins Keynes and Bown to discuss how companies' ability to borrow affects trade.

70: Nicholas Lardy on the Chinese Economy

30 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Nicholas Lardy joins Keynes and Bown to discuss the changing role of the state and private firms in China's economic development.

69: Slowbalization

25 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss what is behind the slowdown of global trade, supply chain expansion, and international commerce.

68: Brexit Votes for Uncertainty

19 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss the rocky departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union. Sam Lowe (Centre for European Reform) joins for an update o...

67: Blood Trade

15 Jan 2019

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with Alice Fulwood (The Economist) about what is behind the $150 billion of annual trade in blood plasma products. They cut thro...

66: Paul Krugman Talks Trade

17 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown sit down with Nobel Prize-winning economist Paul Krugman (CUNY and New York Times) in a wide-ranging interview about international tra...

65: What Would a Trump-China Deal Look Like?

10 Dec 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain the recent 90-day agreement between Presidents Trump and Xi that puts on hold further tariff escalation between the United Sta...

64: (Trade) Dealing with Europe

29 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with veteran trade journalist Alan Beattie (Financial Times) about the complexities of negotiating with the European Union on tr...

63: Can Trump and the EU Strike a Deal?

21 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss the prospect of negotiations between the United States and the European Union on a trade deal that would meet President Trump'...

62: Randomized Trade

09 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with Amit Khandelwal (Columbia Business School) about the impact that exporting has on firm productivity. They discuss his evide...

61: Trade, Firms, Profits, and Market Power: It's Complicated

02 Nov 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with incoming World Bank Chief Economist Penny Goldberg (Yale University) about her research on how trade liberalization affects...

60: America May Be Doing Away with WTO Dispute Settlement

29 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown talk with former WTO Appellate Body member Jennifer Hillman (Georgetown Law) about WTO dispute settlement. They describe the procedur...

59: A Hard Border from History

18 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown talk with Stephen Redding (Princeton University) about his research on the border between East and West Germany erected in the mid-20t...

58: Woodward. Trump. Fear. Trade Is Bad.

10 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown talk with best-selling author and Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative journalist Bob Woodward about his latest book Fear: Trump in th...

57: It's Fun to Discuss the USMCA—the New NAFTA

05 Oct 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown describe key elements of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, announced on October 1, 2018. Beneath the spin, they ana...

56: Do You Like Trade? Tariffs? Trade Deals? China?

29 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with Bruce Stokes (Pew Research Center) about recent poll results on public attitudes toward trade. They discuss how Americans f...

55: Is India a Trade Troublemaker?

23 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with Arvind Subramanian (PIIE, Harvard Kennedy School) about the massive changes in India's trade policy since the 1980s. They e...

54: Can Trump Withdraw from Trade Deals?

15 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown examine the legal arguments surrounding President Trump's threats to withdraw from the North American Free Trade Agreement and World T...

53: Oh NAFTA–It's Canada's Turn

07 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown examine critical economic issues caught up in Canada's talks with the Trump administration over the future of the North American Free ...

52: NAFTA "Deal Fever"

03 Sep 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown examine the still murky details on autos and a potential sunset clause for the Mexico-United States trade agreement--which the Trump a...

51: Trade at the White House in Not So Normal Times

14 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown have a conversation with Jason Furman (PIIE, Harvard Kennedy School)--a former senior economic adviser of the Obama administration--ab...

50: Aluminum Made in the USA

10 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explore the aluminum industry: how to make it, changes in North American production over the past few decades, and the industry's real...

49: Are Trump's Steel Quotas Worse than His Steel Tariffs?

01 Aug 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown describe how the Trump administration's quotas imposed on steel imports from South Korea, Brazil, and Argentina are different from the...

48: Trump Buys the Farmers

27 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain the US government decision to offer up to $12 billion of subsidies to farmers adversely affected by trade retaliation stemming...

47: WTO S.O.S.–Save our System

21 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown detail an emerging approach for the European Union, Japan, China—and the Trump administration—to resolve the conflict over subsidi...

46: How Do Trump's Tariffs Stack Up Historically?

13 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown compare President Donald Trump's tariffs imposed to date—on solar panels, washing machines, steel, aluminum, and Chinese imports—w...

45: Zeroing: The Biggest WTO Threat You've Never Heard Of

03 Jul 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain the outsized importance of "zeroing"—a technical, yet politically controversial method the United States uses to calculate a...

44: Brexit Two Years On

28 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain recent developments in the UK-EU trade talks on Britain's departure from the European Union. At the two-year mark after the Ju...

43: Costing Trump's China Tariffs

22 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain some implications of President Trump's plan to impose tariffs on US imports from China starting July 6, 2018, which could esca...

42: Trump and Tariff Tweets: It's More Complicated Than That

15 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Bown and Keynes explain the nonreciprocal pattern of tariffs—and nontariff barriers—across countries highlighted by President Trump's tweets and s...

41: Trump and China's "War of Saliva"

08 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss a variety of Chinese perspectives of the Trump administration's trade policy.

40: Steel and Aluminum Tariffs: Trump versus Everyone

02 Jun 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Bown and Keynes explain the economic implications of President Trump's decision to apply steel and aluminum trade restrictions on virtually all US tra...

39: Car Crash–Trump Sees More National Security Threats

25 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown talk with Kristin Dziczek (Center for Automotive Research) about President Trump's new investigation into whether imports of autos t...

38: ZTE, Trump, and China–What's the Fuss?

18 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss with Yuan Yang of the Financial Times how the US Commerce Department decision to sanction Chinese telecommunications giant Z...

37: Cottoning on to Trade

09 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown talk with Professor Claudia Steinwender (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) about her research on the impact of the trans-Atlantic...

36: The Railroads Episode: America, India, and Intranational Trade

02 May 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss with Dave Donaldson (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) his research on how massive railroad projects—across America in ...

35: The Labor of NAFTA

27 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Bown and Keynes explain controversial elements of the ongoing NAFTA negotiations that relate to jobs, wages, and workers. There are tradeoffs in the n...

34: So You Want To Be a Trade Negotiator

20 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Bown and Keynes sit down with former acting deputy US Trade Representative Wendy Cutler to learn how to negotiate trade agreements. Wendy shares 25 ye...

33: Trade and Investment Talks: China Wants America's Technology

13 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown explain the Chinese economic development strategy at the core of the Trump administration's Section 301 dispute and latest tariff thre...

32: Trump, China, and Tariffs: $3 billion, $50 billion, or $100 billion?

06 Apr 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss the escalating tariff fight between President Trump and China. They update the status of Trump's "national security" tariffs o...

31: Trade Wars and the Smoot-Hawley Tariff: What Really Happened?

20 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown speak with Douglas Irwin (PIIE and Dartmouth College) about popular misconceptions around the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, the Gre...

30: Trade Talks to Real People

15 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown have a conversation with Ana Swanson from the New York Times about trade and journalism. They discuss encounters relating to steel, al...

29: After Trump's Tariffs: Retaliation, Negotiation, and Litigation

10 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown explain developments resulting from President Trump's announcement of new "nationa...

28: What Are Trade Deals For? Dani Rodrik Does Trade Talks, Part 4

02 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown have a wide-ranging conversation with Dani Rodrik (Harvard Kennedy School) about t...

27: What Are Trade Deals For? Dani Rodrik Does Trade Talks, Part 3

02 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown have a wide-ranging conversation with Dani Rodrik (Harvard Kennedy School) about t...

26: What Are Trade Deals For? Dani Rodrik Does Trade Talks, Part 2

01 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown have a wide-ranging conversation with Dani Rodrik (Harvard Kennedy School) about t...

25: What Are Trade Deals For? Dani Rodrik Does Trade Talks, Part 1

01 Mar 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown have a wide-ranging conversation with Dani Rodrik (Harvard Kennedy School) about t...

24: The Trump Administration Views Trade as National Security Threat

21 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of the Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown explore the US Department of Commerce findings that imports of steel and aluminum ...

23: Did Protectionism Make America Great?

15 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of the Economist talk with PIIE Senior Fellow Douglas Irwin about his recent book Clashing over Com...

22: The Other UK Trade Deals–Brexit and Rolling over the EU's FTAs

09 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of The Economist discuss the challenges facing the UK government as it seeks negotiations separate ...

21: North American Cars–Before and After NAFTA

02 Feb 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown discuss the evolution of the auto industry in North America. Long before the 1994 ...

20: Tariff Time! Washing Machines and Dirty Trade Policy

26 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown discuss the controversy surrounding the US washing machine market and update the s...

19: GSP – Low Tariffs for Development?

19 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown discuss the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), the program rich countries use to offer lower tariffs to exporters in developing ...

18: Brexit–Sectoral Analyses or Impact Assessments?

09 Jan 2018

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes (The Economist) and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown speak with Professor Meredith Crowley (University of Cambridge) about her Brexit re...

17: WTO Ministerials–Now and Then

21 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of The Economist focus on the December 2017 World Trade Organization (WTO) ministerial meeting in B...

16. Weird Trade Barriers–Or How Trade Talks Help a Cocktail Party

15 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of The Economist survey listeners and conduct interviews from the WTO ministerial meeting in Buenos...

15: Is China a Non-Market Economy? Why the WTO Gets to Decide

08 Dec 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Keynes and Bown focus on a huge WTO dispute in which China is suing the European Union and the United States over their refusal to treat it as a marke...

14: Trade Talks Tough: Sanctions on North Korea

30 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown talk with PIIE Senior Fellow Marcus Noland about his research on implementing trad...

13: Export Superstars and Billionaires: When Do Policymakers Need to Worry?

22 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

Soumaya Keynes of The Economist and PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown talk with PIIE Senior Fellow Caroline Freund about her research on big firms, bill...

12: How to Save a (Pacific) Trade Deal

16 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of the Economist examine the new Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partners...

11: The Complicated Impact of Trade…on Developing Countries

09 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of the Economist examine the impact of international trade on economic activity within developing c...

10: What If the UK Crashed into a No-Deal Brexit?

03 Nov 2017

Contributed by Lukas

PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of The Economist examine what a no-deal Brexit would look like, or the economic implications if Bri...

9: Happy 70th GATTiversary–The Origins of Multilateral Trade

27 Oct 2017

Contributed by Lukas

On the occasion of its 70th anniversary, PIIE Senior Fellow Chad P. Bown and Soumaya Keynes of The Economist focus on the origins of the General Agree...