My thoughts on tariffs and trade wars are pretty basic. First off, I am not an economist by any stretch of the imagination. However, I feel we should all pay attention to the economic news.
Reading from “The Hill” newsletter this morning, it appears that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are very concerned of the impact that long-lasting trade wars with China and others will cause severe economic damage to the businesses and residents in their districts. This was in response to President Trump’s additional $200 billion in tariffs on steel, aluminum and Chinese goods. Federal Reserve Chairman Jay Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin both voiced their concerns over the tariffs but, basically, said that they are watching the effects and consequences, but it is too early to tell which way this will go.
I, for one, have always felt that Americans buy too much Chinese “junk”; that we have become addicted to the low prices of things we buy but don’t need. Have you been to Walmart lately? I worry that all this stuff will end up filling up landfills. I mean how much plastic do we need? Why not buy things “made in USA” that cost more just not as many of them? The trend in the U.S. right now is towards smaller houses and minimalizing with less rooms to stuff things into. We should pick and choose the items that may cost more but are important to us and matter in some way; quality as opposed to quantity. Some would say I am naïve. That this would hurt the economy. But, I am saying this is the trend and we should embrace it for the future of our children and grandchildren.
From a financial planning perspective, Americans would have more money to invest in their futures and retirement if they spent less on cheap, poor quality products from China. Yes, American goods would be more expensive but, maybe, just maybe, they would last a life time as opposed to a few years.
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