Trade disputes' effects rolling in on prices, jobs
Some figures to keep in mind:
In Washington state, 4 in 10 jobs depend on international trade, including those of apple, wheat and soy farmers, craft distillers and winemakers, aerospace engineers and machinists, software developers and e-commerce employees, truck drivers and port workers and thousands of other trades and professions.
In 2016, that meant 332,600 jobs tied to exports from the state, third only in the U.S. behind Texas’ 910,300 jobs and California’s 683,000, according to the International Trade Commission.
The value of Washington-produced exported goods reached $7 billion in 2017. Among our top trading partners are China, Canada, Japan, the United Arab Emirates, South Korea, Taiwan, Norway, Mexico, Saudi Arabia and Russia, the top ten accounting for about 41 percent of that total value. China alone accounted for nearly 24 percent of that $7 billion
Which explains why producers, government officials, trade advocates and others are watching with some anxiety as the Trump administration continues talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada. U.S. and Mexico trade representatives reached a tentative agreement last month, but talks with Canada have made less progress with both President Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau threatening to walk away without a deal, although Canadian representatives expressed greater optimism Friday that negotiations were likely to continue through September.
While China remains the state’s top trading partner, the state’s exports to Mexico have increased 700 percent in recent years, while Canada’s have doubled. Washington state’s apple growers supplied $250 million worth of apples to Mexico last year, compared to $50 million exported to Chinese markets.
NAFTA’s trade arrangements with Mexico and Canada, taking effect nearly 25 years ago, were long overdue for an update, said Lori Otto Punk, president of the Washington Council on International Trade, the Seattle-based trade policy organization.
But it’s concerning, Otto Punke said Friday in a phone interview, that talks with Canada and Mexico were preceded by harsh talk, tariffs and threats of retaliatory rounds of more tariffs.
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