Alwaght- Trade war between US-China has cost billions of dollars of losses for both sides in 2018, hitting industries including autos, technology - and above all, agriculture, Reuters reported.
The Broad pain from trade tariffs outlined by several economists shows that it had an overall detrimental impact on both of the world’s two largest economies.
Total US agricultural export shipments to China for the first 10 months of 2018 fell by 42 percent from a year earlier to about $8.3 billion, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
To compensate suffering farmers, the US government has allocated about $11 billion to direct payments and buying agricultural goods for government food programs, after consulting economists, including Tyner.
China resumed purchases of U.S. soybeans in early December following a trade truce agreed to by leaders from the two countries during G20 summit in Argentina. But Beijing kept its 25 percent tariffs on the oilseed from America, which effectively curbed commercial Chinese buying.
China also suffered as products such as phone batteries were hit by US tariffs, and customers began looking to buy from other countries.
A study commissioned by the Consumer Technology Association showed US tariffs on imported Chinese products cost the technology industry an additional $1 billion per month.
The conflict also squeezed US retail, manufacturing and construction companies that had to pay more for metal and other goods.
The Big Three Detroit automakers - General Motors, Ford and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles – have each said higher tariff costs will result in a hit to profits of about $1 billion this year.
The pain is ongoing, economists say: Ford and Fiat expect a similar hit in 2019.
