• @UnderpantsWeevil
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    English
    03 hours ago

    you seemed to only focus on the effects for the steel industry

    Trump did cripple the U.S.’s steel industry

    That’s what I’m responding to. He didn’t cripple the industry. It improved after the tariffs.

    Tariffs to build in the negative externalities

    They localize production.

    One way overseas production can out compete domestic production is by letting the foreign market eat all the externalities to keep production costs low.

    Trunks tariffs were not that.

    Largely because American steel production is as messy as anywhere else.

    The future of cheap efficient steel production is going to be centered around electric powered foundries. But set up costs for new foundries are high, and simply costing on existing infrastructure lets prices stay low.

    Tariffs/subsidies give developing industries an opportunity to invest in higher efficiency infrastructure without being priced out of the market.

    They’re not inherently bad. And people being deluded into thinking they are undermines the quality of the industry as a whole, as businesses cling to cheap outdated machinery.

    • @[email protected]
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      fedilink
      127 minutes ago

      I understand that, but being pedantic doesn’t make your points stronger when you handwave the negatives. You also interpret the steel industry as just steel producers but it is also the purchasers who have seen increasing costs due to tariffs.

      Us steel has made a smaller portion of worldwide supply, while costing more for usa purchasers. However, even with the tariffs, some Costa are down due to less demand, from a cooling economy, which tariffs are partly to blame for.

      Tariffs dont give businesses the opportunity to invest in new infrastructure. They actively make it less necessary for them to do so. They reduce the need to invest in efficiency.

      https://www.barrons.com/articles/biden-trump-steel-tariffs-c44f4279