The GDP of Madagascar is 15.8 billion. The GDP of Fort Myers-Cape Coral in Florida is 50 billion. In 2023 the per capita income of people in Madagascar was $506 a year. That is, people there earn $1.38 cents a day. It is one of the poorest countries on earth.
We have a trade deficit with them so we are imposing a tariff. T…
The GDP of Madagascar is 15.8 billion. The GDP of Fort Myers-Cape Coral in Florida is 50 billion. In 2023 the per capita income of people in Madagascar was $506 a year. That is, people there earn $1.38 cents a day. It is one of the poorest countries on earth.
We have a trade deficit with them so we are imposing a tariff. That is odious. We cannot have a trade equilibrium with them and this has nothing to do with their imposition of tariffs on us. They could impose a 100% tariff on us and that will mean nothing to us.
Madagascar's main exports are vanilla, cloves, nickel, and textiles, with vanilla being a particularly significant global export, especially to France. So, they will always sell to us more than we can ever sell to them simply because people in Madagascar cannot afford virtually anything we have to sell! The trade deficit with them is not due to Madagascar imposing trade barriers on us. As it is almost always the case, the reasons why there are trade imbalances are multiple and they are not due to “cheating.”
In fact, the trade deficit with Madagascar is very good for us because we get vanilla, cloves, cobalt, titanium, nickel, and textiles from them.
Ismael Hernandez
The GDP of Madagascar is 15.8 billion. The GDP of Fort Myers-Cape Coral in Florida is 50 billion. In 2023 the per capita income of people in Madagascar was $506 a year. That is, people there earn $1.38 cents a day. It is one of the poorest countries on earth.
We have a trade deficit with them so we are imposing a tariff. That is odious. We cannot have a trade equilibrium with them and this has nothing to do with their imposition of tariffs on us. They could impose a 100% tariff on us and that will mean nothing to us.
Madagascar's main exports are vanilla, cloves, nickel, and textiles, with vanilla being a particularly significant global export, especially to France. So, they will always sell to us more than we can ever sell to them simply because people in Madagascar cannot afford virtually anything we have to sell! The trade deficit with them is not due to Madagascar imposing trade barriers on us. As it is almost always the case, the reasons why there are trade imbalances are multiple and they are not due to “cheating.”
In fact, the trade deficit with Madagascar is very good for us because we get vanilla, cloves, cobalt, titanium, nickel, and textiles from them.