On the US side: President Trump revealed his intention to impose additional tariffs on Chinese imports Tuesday night. A few hours later, China struck back with an announcement of retaliatory tariffs on $50 billion worth of US goods imports, mainly concentrated on agricultural produce.

HEADLINES
On the US side: President Trump revealed his intention to impose additional tariffs on Chinese imports Tuesday night. A few hours later, China struck back with an announcement of retaliatory tariffs on $50 billion worth of US goods imports, mainly concentrated on agricultural produce. President Trump announced late last week that he is thinking of an additional $100 billion in tariffs. It remains unclear what China would have to do so that the Trump administration would not follow through on the tariffs. In other news, the US President is hoping for a sealed NAFTA deal as soon as mid-April.
On the EU side: Italy is struggling to create a coalition government following its March elections. The victorious Five Star Movement’s leader Luigi di Maio is willing to speak with PD and the League yet refuses to collaborate with Berlusconi’s Forza Italia. Read more here
Coming Up: The eighth Summit of the Americas meeting will be taking place April 13-14. The highly anticipated IMF and World Bank Spring meetings (April 20-22), are fast approaching. The countries currently exempt from the March 23 aluminium and steel tariffs (EU, Mexico, Canada, Argentina, South Korea, Australia, Brazil) have until May 1 to negotiate a permanent exemption with the United States. 

SPOTLIGHT
Opinion: How the U.S. and China Could End this ‘Tit-For-Tat’ Trade War – Marie Kasperek, MarketWatch
Atlantic Council 

“ Who loses in this tit-for-tat game? Short answer: No one wins.”

In my newest piece for MarketWatch, I write about who loses in the US-China tit-for-tat trade dispute, look at the timeline ahead, and offer possible ways of de-escalation. I also explain why the Trump administration’s stubborn focus on trade deficits is misguided and how tariffs on China will not affect the trade deficit the US has with China but will leave the U.S. economy and Americans with more problems

Opinion: Pork with a Side of Tariff  – Ashish Kumar Sen, Atlantic Council

[…] China shows its willingness and ability to retaliate, while leaving areas of trade such as soybeans, where tariffs would have a significant economic effect, untouched for now and available for any possible further escalation.”- Bart Oosterveld

In a recent New Atlanticist article by Ashish Kumar Sen, the Director of the Atlantic Council’s Global Business and Economics Program, Bart Oosterveld, shares his view on China’s tariffs on US goods. 

TRADE
Press Release: Under Section 301 Action, USTR Releases Proposed Tariff List on Chinese Products, Office of the United States Trade Representative
Press Release: USTR Robert Lighthizer Statement on the President’s Additional Section 301 Action, Office of the United States Trade Representative
Press Release: China Files WTO Complaint Over the United States’ Tariff Measures on Chinese Goods, World Trade Organization
Interview: Full Navarro: Trump’s Tariff Threats are not a ‘negotiating tactic’ with China, NBC News
Graph: States That Could Be Hurt the Most by a Trade War with China, David Ascienzo, Value Penguin
Opinion: China’s Targeted Tariff Retaliation Threatens Trump Heartland, Lucy Hornby, Financial Times
Opinion: Donald Trump Trade Threats Lack Credibility: US Bluster has Caused most of the World to Rally to China’s Side, Lawrence Summers, Financial Times
Opinion: Trade Disputes Reveal the EU’s Strategic Weakness, Wolfgang Muenchau, Financial Times
Opinion: Trade War and Peace: Policies Should Unite Allies, Make Lasting Reforms, Daniel Price, The Hill
Analysis: Why China is Confident it Can Beat Trump in a Trade War, Steven Lee Myers, The New York Times
Analysis: Looming China Trade Action Divides Industry and Roils Markets, Ana Swanson, The New York Times
News: Farmers who Propelled Trump to Presidency Fear Becoming Pawns in Trade War, David Weigel, Washington Post
Analysis: China Started the Trade War, Not Trump, Greg Ip, The Wall Street Journal
News: Stocks Fall on Trade Worries, Akane Otani and Kosaku Narioka, The Wall Street Journal
Opinion: Trump, Tariffs, and the Protectionist Temptation, Phil Gramm and Mike Solon, AEI
News: Germany Eyes Trade Compromise with US ‘by Summer’, Bjarke Smith-Meyer, Politico Europe
News: Trump Softens Key Nafta Demand on Regional Car Content, Eric Martin and Josh Wingrove, Bloomberg
Analysis: Looming Deadlines Explain Why Trump Is Hurrying for a Nafta Deal, Josh Wingrove, Eric Martin, and Andrew Mayeda, Bloomberg
News: Trump Hopes to Have Renegotiated NAFTA Deal to Present by Mid-April: Report, Brett Samuels, The Hill
Opinion: Midlands Voices: Urgently Needing NAFTA Breakthroughs Now, Earl Anthony Wayne, Omaha World Herald
Opinion: Trump to Use KORUS Revision As Leverage, But Against Whom?, John Brinkley, Forbes
Report: The U.S. Wants Back in the TPP? Good Luck With That, Foreign Policy


TWEET/FACTOID OF THE WEEK



GLOBALIZATION

Report: Women, Business and the Law 2018, World Bank Group
Speech: Azevêdo: Strength and Flexibility are Essential for an Effective Trading System, World Trade Organization
Analysis: How Free Trade Could Unlock Africa’s Potential, David Pilling, Financial Times
Analysis: HSBC brings in AI to Help Spot Money Laundering, Martin Arnold, Financial Times
Analysis: Non-Tech Businesses are Beginning to Use Artificial Intelligence at Scale, The Economist
Opinion: Return of Volatility is a Healthy Resetting of the Markets, Mohamed El-Erian, Financial Times
News: Virtual Health Care Could Save the U.S. Billions Each Year, Kaveh Safavi and Frances Dare, Harvard Business Review
Blog: A Comprehesive Approach to Transatlantic Workforce Development, Keerthika Sumbramanian, German Marshall Fund
Analysis: What the EU’s Tough New Privacy Rules Mean for Big Tech, Mehreen Khan and Aliya Ram, Financial Times 


WHAT WE ARE READING

Opinion:  Nobody Knows Anything About China, James Palmer, Foreign Policy
Analysis: China’s Maritime Silk Road: Strategic and Economic Implications for the Indo-Pacific Region, Michael J. Green, CSIS  
Opinion: The Time for Revoking Brexit has Passed, Wolfgang Münchau, Financial Times 
News: May Plans ‘Customs Partnership’ to Unlock Northern Ireland Dilemma, George Parker and Jim Pickard, Financial Times
Opinion: Britain Underestimates Brexit’s Damage to Northern Ireland, The Economist
Analysis: The EU Remains Unprepared for the Next Migration Crisis, Stefan Lehne, Carnegie Europe
Analysis: Cybersecurity and the New Era of Space Activities, David P. Fidler, Council on Foreign Relations 


UPCOMING EVENTS

April 9: Italy’s Threat to the Euro, AEI
​​​​April 10: The Work Ahead: Machines, Skills, and U.S. Leadership in the Twenty-First Century, CFR
April 11: Protectionism, Data Privacy, and the Transatlantic PartnershipAtlantic Council
April 17: Digital Currencies: Implications for Central Banks, Brookings Institute
April 24: An Update on the Transatlantic Relationship: What you need to know about Taxes | Trade | Tariffs and the Economy on both sides of the Atlantic, European American Chamber of Commerce


Your Newsletter Team:

Marie Kasperek, Associate Director, Global Business & Economics, Atlantic Council
Alexatrini Tsiknia, Intern, Global Business & Economics, Atlantic Council 
Zachary Coles, Intern, Global Business & Economics, Atlantic Council

Please send us suggested news stories, opinion pieces, publications, and upcoming events that you would like us to highlight! Email mkasperek@AtlanticCouncil.org with your ideas and suggestions.

The views expressed in this newsletter and linked external articles and content do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its sponsors.

© 2018 Atlantic Council

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Opinion: How the U.S. and China Could End this ‘Tit-For-Tat’ Trade War – Marie Kasperek, MarketWatch

“ Who loses in this tit-for-tat game? Short answer: No one wins.”
 

In my newest piece for MarketWatch, I write about who loses in the US-China tit-for-tat trade dispute, look at the timeline ahead, and offer possible ways of de-escalation. I also explain why the Trump administration’s stubborn focus on trade deficits is misguided and how tariffs on China will not affect the trade deficit the US has with China but will leave the U.S. economy and Americans with more problems. 

Opinion: Pork with a Side of Tariff  – Ashish Kumar Sen, Atlantic Council

[…] China shows its willingness and ability to retaliate, while leaving areas of trade such as soybeans, where tariffs would have a significant economic effect, untouched for now and available for any possible further escalation.”- Bart Oosterveld
 

In a recent New Atlanticist article by Ashish Kumar Sen, the Director of the Atlantic Council’s Global Business and Economics Program, Bart Oosterveld, shares his view on China’s tariffs on US goods.