Keynes and Bown discuss the Trump administration’s announcement to impose new tariffs on $300 billion of Chinese imports split across September 1 and December 15, 2019. Each tariff list targets a different set of consumer goods for the first time, and yet their rollout also avoids import surges associated with peak American shopping seasons. They also describe new evidence of heightening concerns over the condition of the US and global economy.

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• Chad P. Bown. Trump’s Fall 2019 China Tariff Plan: Five Things You Need to Know. Peterson Institute for International Economics Trade and Investment Policy Watch. August 14, 2019.
• Soumaya Keynes. The trade war is leading some firms to crimp investment. The Economist, August 15, 2019.
• Chad P. Bown and Douglas A. Irwin. Trump’s Assault on the Global Trading System. And Why Decoupling From China Will Change Everything. Foreign Affairs, September/October 2019.