What to Keep in Mind: Trump’s Tariffs
Before we get along any further, let’s clarify what a tariff is. From the Council on Foreign Relations; “Tariffs are a form of tax applied on imports from other countries. Economists say the costs are largely passed on to consumers Countries have used them to protect domestic industries, such as agriculture and renewable energy, as well as to retaliate against other states’ unfair trade practices.”(1) There is a third paragraph that I want to come back to but before I do, a little history lesson is in order. Tariffs go back to, at least, Athenian Greece. The port of Piraeus imposed tariffs on grained other goods via a levy of two percent, to raise taxes for Athens. There were also restrictions on money landing and grain transport was only allowed through the port of Piraeus. This is, I think, the earliest example, and it’s less about national protectionism as tariffs would commonly be used for than as a way to increase revenues regionally. Athens was a city state, as opposed...
