Skip to content
Sign In Subscribe
The Economist — Business — Trade Deficit — Economy — Trade — Tariffs

Robert Lighthizer on the need for tariffs to reduce America’s trade deficit

Robert Lighthizer, the US trade representative under Donald Trump, argues that hefty tariffs are necessary to reduce America's trade deficit and protect its economic future.

1 min read
  • America has accumulated over $12 trillion in global trade deficits since 2001, with the trade deficit with China being the largest.
  • The trade deficit has resulted in a transfer of trillions of dollars of wealth from the US to other countries.
  • Trade deficits can have negative effects on economic growth, labor force composition, and wages.
  • The US has gone from being the country with the largest net-investment surplus to the one with the largest net deficit of over $15 trillion.
  • The US trade representative under Donald Trump argues that hefty tariffs are necessary to reduce America's trade deficit and protect its economic future.
Robert Lighthizer on the need for tariffs to reduce America’s trade deficit
The country’s deficits with China are so immense that new thinking—and hefty tariffs—are required, says the US trade representative under Donald Trump | By Invitation
The Economist

More in Trade Deficit

More in Business

More from The Economist

Latest