During the last G20 meeting in November the participants promised to avoid protectionist measures, but shortly thereafter six of the countries introduced new trade barriers. The same politicians who warned against the protectionism that they have learned from history then stated that the national automotive industry needs special support.
- The French government wants to give loans to the automotive industry under the condition that they maintains their production and staff.
- In Britain, it is about "British jobs for British workers".
- In the USA the slogan is "Buy American ".
- In Sweden, Prime Minister Reinfeldt has views on the Christmas consumption. -If you open the Christmas present and it says" Made in China" then you have not done enough to secure the jobs in Sweden.
Traditional protectionism is usually about raising customs duties and tariffs and to provide subventions to the National industry. However, the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the EU has sometimes contributed to
keeping such "manners" away. Instead other forms of protectionism are now developing. Here is a selection from the current flora of protectionist initiatives:
Stricter rules for basic human rights in the workplace were given by U.S. President Obama in his meeting with the Mexican President Calderón. Such requirements are intended to drive up the Mexican labor costs and to satisfy U.S. interests.
The USA's new Finance Minister, Tim Geithner, used his first day at work to blame China for manipulating its exchange rate. China's exchange rate is manipulated by definition because it is not evaluated by the market. The question is instead if the yuan is undervalued in order to stimulate exports. In 2005, the link to the dollar was abandoned and since then the yuan has appreciated gradually with more than 20% against the dollar. Since July last year it has stagnated against the dollar, but it has been strengthened by 23% against the euro and by 30% against the emerging countries' currencies.
Cecilia Hermansson Swedbank Text & Picture