USA's decline is more certain and picking up steam with Trump taking over

 Those tariffs against friends and foe are making the decline faster than the world had hoped for. It is a blessing in disguise. Suffice to say, some tariffs are just to be used as bargaining chips, to be walked back later using the period of reprieve, hoping that the victims will be beaten down and surrender.

The hardest hit will be Canada and Mexico, with the EU coming on-line. The EU is now clutching at straws to keep its economy afloat and Trump is going to push it underwater for good. The EU made the fatal mistake of following the USA to go against Russia, getting little in benefit but suffering serious consequences.

Canada, Mexico and EU countries are not BRICS members and have no means to mitigate their fate under USA tariffs. Their only recourse is to back down and comply. Mexico, though not a BRICS member, with massive Chinese investments can still handle the hit. China and other BRICS countries, like Brazil and Russia can always rely on BRICS and the Global South to mitigate their difficulties.

Having said that, China is no longer China of 2016 and today is even more prepared to take on whatever sanctions or tariffs the USA is going to throw at it. Moreover, China has the capacity to retaliate where it hurts, not necessarily in quantitative terms. After all, China does not need to buy that much from the USA as the other way round. China is just pausing its further retaliation, waiting for the effect of those tariffs on USA inflation and USA consumer reaction.

The narrative that the effect of those tariffs is still uncertain is just plainly attempts to brush aside the reality. USA importers are not going to absorb the tariffs themselves without passing the buck to the consumers. It is just denying the inevitable that even the blind can understand using their ears and feeling their pockets.

Anonymous