The Donald Trump administration is pledging a plan of bilateral trade negotiations with individual countries, but Politico speculates his latest move may hinder negotiations. President Trump removed the U.S. from the Paris climate accord last week, joining just Nicaragua and Syria as the only nations not to sign the pact. Politico says the withdrawal sets up the potential for other countries to use Trump’s decision as a reason not to cooperate with him on other negotiations, including trade, or to implement tariffs in retaliation. Beyond simply refusing to negotiate, trading partners could also take steps to hit U.S. products with a so-called carbon tariff, a levy that would increase the cost of American goods to offset the fact that U.S. manufacturers could make products more cheaply because they would not have to abide by Paris climate goals. U.S. Senate Democrat Ron Wyden of Oregon says by leaving the Paris agreement, the Trump administration is “putting a bull’s eye on American exporters and the jobs they support.”
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting News Service.