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The Editor Speaks: Tariffs

When US President Donald Trump started imposing tariffs it would seem not to matter to us living in the Caribbean.

If it creates a trade war let the US fight it out with seemingly the rest of the world.

Unfortunately our little country, The Cayman Islands, will be hit and hard.

We produce very little here and rely on imports to survive.

We cannot obtain all our goods from the USA and even a large proportion of them are imported or some part of the raw materials are.

The biggest con against tariffs is competition. This could mean higher prices and less quality goods and bigger profits for the local (US) manufacturers.

It will certainly mean higher prices here and a lack of adequate supply of products and services.

It could also affect the variety of affordable goods.

The European Union have already imposed tariffs that is forcing Harley-Davidson to move some production out of US.

The local biker boys won’t be happy to hear this.

There is absolutely nothing we can do about it.

With the price of fuel rising every month, jumping higher more and faster than it was when the prices were falling, our cost of index measurements could jump higher than a cow leaps over the moon.

China is immediately retaliating against the US tariffs by “immediately introducing countermeasures of the same scale and strength.”

China’s finance ministry said it would commence imposing its own 25 per cent tariff on 545 categories of US products worth $34 b including soyabeans, beef, whiskey, and off-road vehicles on July 6. China also threatened to add a further $16 b, targeting US energy exports such as coal and crude oil.

As a tit for tat Trump is planning new curbs that would block firms with at least 25% Chinese ownership from buying companies involved in ‘industrially significant technology’.

Do you think he cares whether it affects anybody but his “Love America First” policy?

The way he is going it will be every one in the World shouting “Love America Least”.

Tariffs will affect us and more quickly than a turtle walks across our sand.

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