Xinhua, New York :
Renegotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will hardly reduce the overall U.S. trade deficit and unemployment, experts said.
The United States, Canada and Mexico kicked off the first round of renegotiations on NAFTA in Washington earlier this week.
“We need to assure that huge trade deficits do not continue and we have balance and reciprocity. This should be periodically reviewed,” U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer said in his opening remarks.
However, economists believe reducing U.S. trade deficits through NAFTA renegotiations could prove to be difficult.
“Certainly the opening statement by USTR Lighthizer suggested that he would try. But it will not reduce the overall trade deficit,” Richard Cooper, a professor of international economy at Harvard University, told Xinhua in a recent interview.
Trade negotiations lead to agreements regarding the rules for trading, which generally lead to more trade that can change a trade balance in any direction, said Paul Wachtel, a New York University economics professor.
“The negotiations are not going to have any direct consequences for the U.S. trade deficit,” said Wachtel.
Statistics from Eric Lascelles, chief economist at RBC Global Asset Management Inc, show that U.S. companies tend to pay higher tariffs when conducting business in foreign markets than foreign firms do in the United States.
“But trade is a delicate issue. Incentivizing or pushing trading partners to lower barriers is one thing; imposing new tariffs is another,” said Kelly Bogdanov, a portfolio analyst at RBC Wealth Management. “The latter usually doesn’t end well-especially between major trading partners.”
Renegotiations on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) will hardly reduce the overall U.S. trade deficit and unemployment, experts said.
The United States, Canada and Mexico kicked off the first round of renegotiations on NAFTA in Washington earlier this week.
“We need to assure that huge trade deficits do not continue and we have balance and reciprocity. This should be periodically reviewed,” U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Robert Lighthizer said in his opening remarks.
However, economists believe reducing U.S. trade deficits through NAFTA renegotiations could prove to be difficult.
“Certainly the opening statement by USTR Lighthizer suggested that he would try. But it will not reduce the overall trade deficit,” Richard Cooper, a professor of international economy at Harvard University, told Xinhua in a recent interview.
Trade negotiations lead to agreements regarding the rules for trading, which generally lead to more trade that can change a trade balance in any direction, said Paul Wachtel, a New York University economics professor.
“The negotiations are not going to have any direct consequences for the U.S. trade deficit,” said Wachtel.
Statistics from Eric Lascelles, chief economist at RBC Global Asset Management Inc, show that U.S. companies tend to pay higher tariffs when conducting business in foreign markets than foreign firms do in the United States.
“But trade is a delicate issue. Incentivizing or pushing trading partners to lower barriers is one thing; imposing new tariffs is another,” said Kelly Bogdanov, a portfolio analyst at RBC Wealth Management. “The latter usually doesn’t end well-especially between major trading partners.”
