Tariffs Catch-All

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www.ctvnews.ca

‘We no longer felt welcome nor safe’: Canadian snowbirds cashing out of U.S. for good

The number of Canadian 'snowbirds' planning to sell their second homes in sunny Florida and Arizona has surged this spring, many of them put off by the sudden chill that has blanketed relations between their homeland and the U.S.
www.ctvnews.ca www.ctvnews.ca

The number of Canadian “snowbirds” planning to sell their second homes in sunny Florida and Arizona has surged this spring, many of them put off by the sudden chill that has blanketed relations between their homeland and the U.S.

Real estate agents say they are seeing more Canadians cashing out, further softening property prices in warm-weather states that have long attracted retirees and tourists from cold and snowy Canada.

Canadians spent close to US$6 billion on U.S. real estate from April 2023 to March 2024 - making up 13 per cent of all foreign transactions - more than any other nationality, according to data from the National Association of Realtors. Nearly half of the homes purchased by Canadians were for vacation purposes, with Florida, Arizona and Hawaii ranking as the top markets.

Last week, Tracy and Dale McMullen sold their vacation home in Buckeye, Arizona, a property they owned for five years. The Alberta residents, who usually spend four to five months in Arizona a year, said they are not planning to come back.

“We decided to sell the property after the current POTUS took office,” said Dale, referring to U.S. President Donald Trump, who was inaugurated for the second time in January.

“It was time to leave. We felt we could not trust what he might do next to us as individuals and to our country. We no longer felt welcome nor safe.”

Canadians are feeling stung by the actions and words of the Trump administration, which has imposed steep trade tariffs on its northern neighbor, threatening Canada’s export-dependent economy. Trump’s repeated suggestions that Canada should become a U.S. state, and his derogatory references to now-former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “governor” have annoyed Canadians and offended their national pride.

As a result, many Canadians are boycotting U.S.-made goods, such as bourbon and produce and canceling trips to U.S. destinations.

Canadian return flights from the U.S. fell 13.5 per cent in March from a year earlier, according to Statistics Canada. Canadian-resident return trips by automobile fell about 32 per cent.

Real estate is now facing a similar pullback in demand.

Laurie Lavine, a realtor in Arizona who helped the McMullens with their sale, told Reuters that he currently has 18 listings from Canadians looking to sell, compared with the usual two to four per quarter.
 
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Concrete actions need to follow the calming assurances — if so, Trump might manage to benefit politically to some extent from the chaos he created. A lot of the same investors rebelling against his trade war and attacks on the Fed love his deregulation and tax cut agenda. There is a lot of unused capital out there that needs an outlet and a ton of suppressed M&A activity (though that will likely remain bottled up pending sufficient interest rate declines to de-risk the IRR of leveraged acquisitions).

The market may also get bursts of enthusiasm (however unwarranted) as term sheets or MOUs for trade “deals” with allies start to roll out. Indian, Vietnam and Japan may be among the first, though Japan seem to be settling in for a more drawn out process — they have quietly but publicly refused to proceed without the U.S. withdrawing misleading trade data (start from an agreed baseline representing actual trade balances, including services and excluding trade neutral domestic policies like VAT) and providing a concrete list of goals/demands as a starting point.
 
nycfan said:

Elon Musk Warns Rare Earth Magnet Shortage May Delay Tesla’s Robots​

Click to expand...
In related news, the rare earth magnet shortage will also be delaying full-self driving mode. Elon swears, if not for the dastardly tariffs, humanoid robots would be driving Teslas all around the country
 
This administration has been such a gift to China. I'm still very much in the camp that China is one of those enemies it's better to keep closer, but the reactionaries who now run this country have played into every single one of their traps.

1. You don't launch a trade war you can't win, and we can't win against China. Hence, the asskicking we're receiving.
2. You don't cede geopolitical influence to your chief geopolitical rival. Which is exactly what we're doing by pulling back from Africa, Eastern Europe, Central America, etc.
3. You don't alienate your primary suppliers for raw materials and goods needed to win the military and technology wars of the future.

Trump's brain is stuck in 1982. His advisors want to revisit 1938. But China is thinking about 2075. We (by which I mean the idiots who voted for Trump) deserve every bit of the humiliation we're receiving right now.
 
nycfan said:
though that will likely remain bottled up pending sufficient interest rate declines to de-risk the IRR of leveraged acquisitions).
Click to expand...
I know it's not your fault -- when in Rome and all that. It's just borderline insane that this type of writing has become not just accepted but standardized and expected. And I'm not exactly a guy who shies away from abstract technocratic language when it's appropriate.
 

Treasury chief Scott Bessent says U.S. has an "an opportunity for a big deal" with China​


www.cbsnews.com

Treasury chief Scott Bessent says U.S. has an "an opportunity for a big deal" with China

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday said he believes the Trump administration could strike a deal with China.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com

“… Bessent, who delivered the keynote address at the Institute of International Finance in Washington, D.C., today, said that the Trump administration wants the U.S. economy to rebalance toward more manufacturing, while urging China to shift away from what he called "export-led manufacturing growth."

… Bessent made it clear in his speech that the Trump administration wants to see changes in China's export-based economy.

"It's an unsustainable model that is not only harming China but the entire world," Bessent said in a Washington speech, stressing concerns around trade imbalances that Mr. Trump says he hopes to address through sweeping tariffs. …”

[Bessent went on to criticize the IMF and World Bank]
 
www.mediaite.com

‘We Used to be All-Tariff!’ Trump Defends China Trade War And Claims Tariffs Will Pay For Lower Taxes

"You know, in 1913, they traded to the income tax system. We used to be all-tariff! And we had no income tax. And we had the wealthiest country"
www.mediaite.com www.mediaite.com

“President Donald Trump took questions from the press on Wednesday outside the White House and was asked if he was nearing a deal with China to lower his massive tariffs on the country.

The exchange came a day after Trump appeared to back down from his trade war with China. “145% is very high and it won’t be that high. It won’t be anywhere near that high. It’ll come down substantially. But it won’t be zero,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday — sparking a surge in the markets.

“Can you clarify, Mr. President, on China?” asked an off-camera reporter [today].

“Yeah, we are going to have a fair deal with China. It’s going to be fair,” Trump replied.

… “Are you talking to them actively now?” pressed the reporter.

“Actively? Everything’s active. Everybody wants to be a part of what we’re doing. They know that they can’t get away with it any longer, but they’re still going to do fine. And we’re going to be a country that you can be proud of. Not a laughing stock all over the world for many years,” Trump replied

… “So, Mr. President, how does it look in the meantime? Are you considering lowering tariffs on China while you’re negotiating?” another reporter asked.

“It looks good. We were losing anywhere from $3 to $5 billion a day. Think of it. We’re losing billions of dollars a day under Biden and other presidents, frankly. But under Biden, it got really worse. China got out of control. We’re losing a trillion dollars a year. Trillion. Not a billion, not a million. A trillion.

And now we’re going to be making money with everyone, and everyone is going to be happy. But we’re no longer going to be the country that’s ripped off by every country in the world.”
 
(1) Waiting for all the receipts on all these trade deals.
(2) Let's put a pin on her claim that there will be no unilateral reduction in tariffs on China. I don't think that's possible.
 
There’s news out that Trump will be folding on automobile tariffs. Schedule an appointment with the White House ASAP to get your product exempted.
 
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