We have been buying imported goods because the Fed has been printing money. In essence, it has been printing prosperity and creating the false notion that you can get something for nothing. The problem, of course, is that the side effects of massive debt and inflation will eventually have to be reckoned with. So far, the Fed has been unable to find a way to unwind its huge balance sheet and normalize interest rates without destroying markets. They have a tiger by the tail.
That was well put. I never quite looked at that aspect. We finance our trade deficit with printed money. People think “weeze been robbed by dim Chicoms”. I say we are stealing the Chicoms blind. They are stupid for enslaving themselves to make and sell us cheap stuff. Then to beat all, they accept US paper in exchange for their blood and sweat.