[dennisw]

Clearly, the "export profile" of the U.S. does not bother Pat a whit, as by his standard, we should export more corn and soybeans and concentrate on that increasing that share of agricultural goods exports from 8%. In other words, Pat (the economist) correctly identifies some of the comparative advantages, but Pat (the Luddite) looks at the largest exporting country on the globe and sees an "agricultural colony."

Advanced nations export high value added, manufactured goods. That's how Japan has run  a trade surplus for three decades. Usually it's third world nations that try to pay for imported manufactured goods by selling raw agricultural commodities abroad.

[1rudeboy]

Usually it's third world nations that try to pay for imported manufactured goods by selling raw agricultural commodities abroad.

And it's the demagogues that try to convince you that developing-nation mercantilist economics can be applied to the most industrialized county on Earth.

[LowCountryJoe]

...That's how Japan has run a trade surplus for three decades...

Read this! It's a short explanation on how "net exports" equal "net capital outflow". The author's parting shot is this, "Increasing our rate of saving will reduce the need for capital imports and, correspondingly, will have a positive effect on our trade balance." The whole page is short in length and quite informative.