So does it really matter if I have a “trade imbalance” with my barber and my local grocery store?
“So does it really matter if I have a “trade imbalance” with my barber and my local grocery store?”
No, but America is not shopping at a grocery store despite the confusion of some on the matter.
It matters greatly if your country has a massive imbalance and it results in the decimation of the manufacturing economy that was once known as the Arsenal of Democracy.
Our trade partners in Asia understand the difference between low value added employment and high value added employment and actively take away the latter since no one here has been trying to stop them from doing so.
They employ non-tariff barriers, market restriction, forced sharing of technology, keiretsu and chaebol support and a number of well known techniques to drive their American targets out of business. Even major American firms have trouble competing in this environment, small ones simply go out of business.
The United States has experienced widespread unemployment and underemployment thanks to our collective indifference to the very real trade policies of our competitors. But we may just continue to shove our heads in the sand and tell ourselves that this is no different than getting a haircut or buying a box of Wheaties, that seems to be popular these days.