Are We Heading for a Trade War?
The Inquiry
BBC
4.6 • 1.7K Ratings
🗓️ 28 June 2018
⏱️ 23 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The world’s two biggest economies are on the brink of a costly standoff. The US has announced tariffs of 25% on a swathe of Chinese goods, starting July 6th. China has vowed to respond in kind. ‘If someone wants a trade war,’ China’s Commerce Minister said, ‘we will fight to the end.’ President Trump is bullish, threatening further tariffs and tweeting: ‘trade wars are good, and easy to win.’ But the WTO has warned that a trade war would have a ‘severe’ impact on the global economy. We look at the forces driving the conflict and how each side might back down. With Helen Grady.
(Image: Cargo containers with USA and Chinese flags on their sides crashing together. Credit: Shutterstock)
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | You're listening to the inquiry on the BBC World Service with me Helen Grady. |
| 0:05.0 | Each week we bring you four expert witnesses answering one pressing question from the news. We can't continue to allow China to rape our country and that's what they're doing. |
| 0:21.3 | It's the greatest theft in the history of the world. |
| 0:25.2 | Terrible. |
| 0:28.6 | President Donald Trump is determined to stand up to China. Next week he'll slap 25% tariffs on a load of Chinese |
| 0:37.4 | goods. Trade wars are good, he's tweeted, and easy to win. China's language may be more cautious but it's |
| 0:45.8 | clear they're up for a fight. |
| 0:50.3 | China doesn't want to engage in a trade war, a government spokesman said, but we're not |
| 0:57.8 | afraid of it either. |
| 0:59.4 | We will resolutely defend the interests of our people. |
| 1:04.0 | The language is hardening, with both sides now threatening a tit-for-tat protectionist battle. |
| 1:11.0 | The World Trade Organization says a trade war between China and the US could |
| 1:16.0 | have a severe impact on the world economy. For those who'd like to find a compromise, |
| 1:22.1 | time is running out. So in this edition of the |
| 1:25.4 | inquiry we're asking, are we heading for a trade war? |
| 1:31.0 | Part 1, Rachius Angor. |
| 1:35.0 | China, they behave like criminals. |
| 1:39.0 | That's strong. |
| 1:40.0 | Well, it is strong, because China behaves like criminals. |
| 1:44.0 | Economist and Fox News commentator Peter Marisi didn't always feel like that. |
| 1:50.0 | In the 90s he was the chief economist at the US body that regulates trade practices. |
| 1:56.0 | Back then, he and his colleagues felt pretty relaxed about China's rise. |
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