Nicholas Cartel's Bottom Line Brief

Finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of Seven (“G7”) democracies prepared a summary document to paper over their respective differences while meeting in Banff, Alberta this past month in preparation for the formal G7 meeting to take place in Kananaskis in June. Officials called for a common understanding of how "non-market policies and practices" undermine international economic security. The statement did not mention President Trump nor the tariffs imposed internationally but clearly it will need to be front and centre at the meeting. Nor did the statement address China, the other world leader in economic terms, and the concerns of massive state subsidies and its export-driven economic model. The G7 statement called for an analysis of market concentration and international supply chain resilience. "We agree on the importance of a level playing field and taking a broadly coordinated approach to address the harm caused by those who do not abide by t...

  Technological advancements in the manufacture of steel have made production more efficient and many jobs were replaced by automation. In the period of time between 1960 to today, American steel mills have decreased from an average of 700,000 workers to just 83,000 and within the last 40 years, the productivity of labour has increased more than five times from approximately 10 man-hours per finished ton to under 2. During that time, the US economy shifted from manufacturing to more service-focussed businesses. After being the largest producer in the world, the US has become the largest steel importer in the world, while only producing a small percentage of the overall steel output  https://blog.boydmetals.com/the-past-present-and-future-of-the-american-steel-industry#:~:text=Slowly%2C%20American%20factories%20that%20were,700%2C000%20workers%20to%20just%2083%2C000 .  President Trump’s decision to double tariffs on both steel and aluminium to 50% will result in an injury t...