One of the main campaign promises of President Trump was to reinvigorate the United States economy, with a focus on bringing manufacturing back to life. Years of outsourcing projects to China and other countries has finally met a wall, with President Trump's tariffs on countries. Those countries, by the way, which have taken advantage of the U.S for decades.
The media would have you believe the tariffs are doom and gloom, and that it will destroy the economy. In reality, it is all part of a negotiating tactic to get more favorable deals for the U.S., and recover our flailing economy, while being also a long-term attempt at refinancing the $36.8 trillion in U.S. debt. The idea is simple though. Encourage more American production and drive the U.S. economy with jobs.
Already as well, some smaller to mid-size manufacturers in the country are seeing an uptick in business inquiries due to the tariffs. Jeanne Whalen of the Wall Street Journal says they spoke with some companies who have seen the uplift, and they bring important parts to the table.
"We spoke with a company in Ohio that makes rubber gasket that get used in oil filters...we spoke with another who makes clutches and brakes which get used in all kinds of industrial equipment," she says.
It is not some revelation from American companies wanting to buy American. It is directly tied to America trying to get their fair share with tariffs.
"They all said they have seen new interest...and a lot is coming from other industrial companies in the U.S. wanting to force things domestically, so they do not have to pay import tariffs," says Whalen.
Now of course, this is not on a road scale. Your big mainstream corporations will still see some issues with tariffs, as they just refuse to go American for their product. But that is the whole point of the tariffs. Bring production back to the U.S. and stop going overseas.
The tariff situation though is very fluid. The numbers President Trump has presented might not stay in effect forever, as countries come to the table to make deals. In some cases, they might go even higher. It is all kind of up in the air.
But for the smaller American manufacturers, which are the backbone of American industry, they hope we stay on this course.
"None of them are really saying this is great for all time, but they are saying early signs are showing some new business for us, so they are cautiously optimistic," Whalen says.
When it is all said and done, we might look back and see this this as the start of the Trump manufacturing boom that was promised.
Photo: AFP