President-elect Trump complains that trade with China is “one-sided.” Does he speak English or what? One-sided trade is like one-sided triangle: you can say it, but you can’t mean (think) it.
Chinese folks deliver goods to Americans (through Walmart, etc.), and we willingly buy them. The Chinese then invest some of their proceeds in the United States. Well, I guess that is one-sided — but wait! They later reap rewards from their successful investments.
It’s two-sided after all, isn’t it?
Perhaps Trump means that the United States has fewer barriers to Chinese goods than China has to American goods, i.e., American consumers’ freedom to buy is better respected than Chinese consumers’ freedom to buy. Since Trump favors tariffs (which would raise prices to Americans and push Chinese goods out of our market), I guess he thinks respect for our freedom is bad and the denial of their freedom is good.
