Breitbart News economics editor John Carney said Tuesday on Fox Business Network’s “Kudlow” that Mexico will not start a trade war in response to President-elect Donald Trump promising tariffs on goods coming from Mexico, Canada and China starting on the first day of his administration.
Guest host David Asman said, “Some of those professors are screaming that this is going to cause inflation. Well it didn’t the last time. I mean it didn’t cause inflation, we didn’t end up with inflation. Worries turning into some kind of trade war again. I mean it’s possible, who knows. I mean there was a trade war during Smoot-Hawley, but this is a far way away from Smoot-Hawley.”
Carney said, “Mexico is not going to wage a trade war against the United States. Look, I understand if you’re the president of Mexico you can’t- for your domestic consumption, you don’t want to seem like you’re just caving into what Trump demands. So you’re gonna stand tough a little bit. 83% of Mexico’s exports come into the United States. You know, very few U.S. exports, a much smaller percentage goes into Mexico. They are dependent on the U.S. market for their economy. About a quarter of their entire GDP is exports to the U.S. So if we have a trade war, Mexico loses on day one. They know this, they’re not going to have a trade war. This is Trump’s opening gambit.”
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