A flurry of activity on reciprocal tariffs and more than one opinion on it - a summation of the week here:
1. In this NYT piece, Robert E. Lighthizer argues in Want Free Trade? May I Introduce You to the Tariff. that the present world trading system has been largely unfair with US running large trade deficits. he calls for an overhaul and need for bringing in some balance.
2. Kyle Handley responds to this in CATO with A One-Dimensional Focus on Balanced Trade Does Not Support the Case for More Tariffs: A Response to Robert Lighthizer stating that one should not ignore services trade surpluses when focusing on goods trade deficits.
3. Mary E. Lovely notes the consequences of such a trade policy and the winers and losers it can create in Trump Isn’t the Only One to Blame for the Tariff Mess.
4. Douglas A Erwin in ‘Reciprocal’ Tariffs Make No Sense states that reciprocal tariff would make the whole system very complicated to implement and would impact US consumers more.
5. Robin Brooks in What’s Trump’s plan on tariffs? argues that the Plan is targetted more to China and would lead to negotiation with trading partners to cut bring down tariffs.
6. In Donald Trump Wants Reciprocity in Trade: Here’s a Closer Look, Edward Alden and Jennifer Hillman trade the history of reciprocal tariff in the US and argue on thecomplexity of implementation and state that unilateral action to implement it is unadvisable.
and finally, Richard Baldwin in this tweet on X has clarified that "reciprocal" doesn't have to mean "goods by goods" or "line by line". It could be average tariffs too. He argues more about how to achieve reciprocity in the multilateral concept in a juggernaut effect here.
What an interesting time to be studying international economic law and policy. International Trade Law classes have surely become more exciting! Bring it on.
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