Source:
https://scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3012699/americans-disapprove-donald-trumps-use-tariffs-trade-war-cnbc
China/ Diplomacy

Americans disapprove of Donald Trump’s use of tariffs in trade war, CNBC All-America Economic Survey finds

  • Despite a year of escalating trade tensions, a new survey shows that most Americans don’t view China as an economic threat
  • President’s announcement of tariffs to punish Mexico for the flow of migrants into the US is met with political and industry opposition
US President Donald Trump tours the US-Mexico border in Calexico, California, on April 5. Photo: AFP

US President Donald Trump’s handling of the relationship with China and heavy-handed use of tariffs is failing to win the support of the American general public, according to a CNBC All-America Economic Survey released on Friday.

The poll, conducted quarterly, found that 45 per cent of those questioned disapproved of the way Trump has handled relations with Beijing, with whom his administration is engaged in a costly trade war soon to reach the one-year mark. Thirty-two per cent of people approved, with the remaining respondents either unsure or holding no opinion.

Days before trade talks between the United States and China broke down on May 10, Trump escalated the conflict by announcing a tariff increase on US$200 billion of Chinese imports from 10 to 25 per cent.

That brought the total value of goods subject to 25 per cent duties to US$250 billion. Forty per cent of poll respondents said they were opposed to the move and 28 per cent were in favour.

The administration has also begun preparations to impose duties on the remainder of Chinese imports.

In the trade talks, the administration is seeking commitments from Beijing on a range of trade and economic matters, including industrial subsidies, forced technology transfers and intellectual property protection.

Yet just 32 per cent of those polled saw China as an economic threat, according to the survey, which questioned 800 Americans around the country and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 per cent.

That is 7 percentage points higher than in June 2018, shortly before the US imposed the first tranche of tariffs on Chinese goods, but markedly lower than March 2016, when the poll found almost half of Americans viewed China as an economic threat.

Though respondents generally disapproved of Trump’s use of tariffs, a majority (56 per cent) said China’s trade practices with the US were unfair, though the figure was down 6 percentage points compared with June 2018.

Beyond China, the survey found that a slight plurality of Americans disapproved of Trump’s trade policies with all countries.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Mexico on June 10 if the country does not step up its immigration enforcement. Photo: AFP
US President Donald Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Mexico on June 10 if the country does not step up its immigration enforcement. Photo: AFP

The polling was conducted between May 22 and May 26, before Trump said on Thursday that he intended to impose tariffs on Mexico in a bid to force it to tighten border security and reduce the number of migrants entering the US.

Those tariffs, which Trump said would begin at 5 per cent on June 10 and increase periodically until the flow of migrants over the southern border ceased, were met with both political and industry opposition.

“These tariffs will be paid by American families and businesses without doing a thing to solve the very real problems at the border,” said Neil Bradley, executive vice-president of the US Chamber of Commerce.

Analysis released by Bradley’s organisation on Friday found that a 5 per cent tax on Mexican imports could cost US businesses and consumers US$17 billion, rising to more than US$86 billion if duties are eventually increased to 25 per cent.

During his presidency, Trump has sought to justify the use of tariffs as an effective method of both forcing trade partners to the negotiating table and encouraging companies to shift manufacturing to US soil.

In its latest survey, however, CNBC found that 34 per cent of respondents were less likely to buy a product that carried a “Made in China” tag, down considerably from 52 per cent in 2007, when the question was first included in the poll.

Despite a far from favourable verdict on Trump’s trade policies, the survey found that overall approval of his presidency, buoyed by strong vitals in the domestic economy, remained steady at 40 per cent, largely unchanged from the last poll in March.