Nobel prize-winning economist and former New York Times columnist Paul Krugman calls the Trump tariffs the biggest trade shock in history. In the immediate aftermath, incredulity and shock was widespread. The size, and wildly different levels, were not expected. And there were clearly some howlers as well. Norfolk Island (population 2188 people) with no known exports to the US, copped 29%. The uninhabited Heard and McDonald Islands in the Antarctic got 10%. Angry penguin cartoons sprouted up all over the place.
It would be funny – if it so profoundly weren’t.
It really hit home for me when I saw the list of rates for our region in David Armstrong’s fortnightly Asia Media update for P and I. China’s rate is the highest in the world, 34% on top of the 20% already imposed, and they hit back almost immediately slapping 34% on the US. The rates being imposed on the rest of our region are devastating.
They include: Cambodia 49%; Laos 48%; Vietnam 46%; Thailand 36%; Indonesia and Taiwan 32%; India 26%; South Korea 25%; Japan, Brunei, and Malaysia 24%; the Philippines 17%; Timor Leste and Singapore 10%. Huge hits for many nations which can least afford it.
If anyone still believed that the Australian election campaign would proceed oblivious to world events, this week ended that fantasy.
So, we will continue to watch closely the Trump effect on the Australian election, not least the impact on fortunes of the two major party leaders. Frank Bongiorno asks if Australians will elect a man as “bleak” as Peter Dutton, and David Solomon challenges us to think beyond the concept of the “strong” or “weak” leader. Patricia Edgar takes a deep dive into the hugely popular and confronting new TV show Adolescence.
Remembering that young voters are telling pollsters they are sick of band aid policies, and want big change, Hal Pawson interrogates the government’s housing policy and asks if it is “hyperactivity without a plan”.
We begin our “If I were the minister I would ……” series this week and Julian Cribb takes the idea a step further, writing the letter he wishes an environment minister would write. Abul Rizvi begins a three-part take on what an immigration minister should be doing.
As always, we aim to add fact and depth to the issues that shape our daily lives, drawing on the deep pool of Pearls and Irritations authors.
Dozens of you have been in touch in the past week as we have continued to wrestle with some serious technical issues affecting all elements of our website and, often, the daily mail as well. For those who were worried we had been hacked, be assured this is not the case. We are introducing a new, more robust website after years of planning, and it is proving much more difficult than expected. The small, very hardworking P and I team are working overtime to get it running smoothly. We are all grateful for your continuing patience.
Until next week.
Catriona Jackson, editor, Pearls and Irritations
Catriona Jackson is the Editor, Pearls and Irritations