The stock market made a comeback after the shock of Trump’s drone attack on General Soleimani subsided. There’s a lot of hot air in stocks, and most of it comes from the president’s claim the economy is in great shape and will continue to grow. But most economists know the U.S. economy continues to take a beating from Mr. Trump’s tariff and sanction wars.
The military war Mr. Trump started with Iran will hurt America’s fragile economy. The global economy will also take a hit thanks to a spike in oil prices and the global manufacturing slowdown. Some economists claim central banks around the world don’t have enough interest-rate cutting tools to handle a recession if Iran retaliates. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell thinks the U.S. economy is in good shape, but nine states have negative economic growth now, and 25 states think a recession is right around the corner.
Mr. Trump claims the Chinese will sign the phase one agreement on January 15th. But the phase one deal only covers a fraction of the issues between Trump and China. Americans will continue to pay Trump’s tariff tax in 2020. Trump dropped the tariff percentage on some Chinese products, but he plans to keep other tariffs in place until China agrees to stop funding its tech corporations.
Trump thought his business ban on Huawei would bring the giant tech company to its knees. But CEO Ren Zhengfei reported revenue of $122 billion in 2019 thanks to smartphone sales, and the 5G platform the company plans to roll out in 2020. The FCC wants to end the business license deal the government has with American tech companies in February. That move will hurt the U.S. techies and the economy.
U.S. manufacturing continues to erode along with consumer confidence. Both are signs Trump’s great economy has health issues. The low unemployment percentage isn’t a real number, according to two Fed members. Those members think the 63 percent labor work force ratio proves a lot of unemployed, but hirable people, don’t look for jobs in this low-paying job market.
The Trumpster let Iran know he wants to blow up the country’s cultural sites if Khomeini decides to retaliate. But Pentagon Chief Mark Esper told the press the U.S. will follow the rule of law and not destroy Heritage sites. Esper also said he plans to sit in front of Congress and explain why the Trumpster lost it and decided to drone-fry the Iranian general. Esper is a Trumpian, but he plans to follow the law instead of Trump’s law in this tense situation.
Further Reading: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/06/us/politics/trump-esper-iran-cultural-sites.html
