Why We Trade
Publication Date: January 2008
Publisher: Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace
Author(s): Russell Roberts
Research Area: Economics; Trade
Keywords: Economy; Trade Deficit; China
Type: Brief
Coverage: United States
Abstract:
The world would be a better and more peaceful place if we stopped measuring the trade deficit. Mercantilism is an outdated concept. We don’t export to create jobs. We export so we can earn money to buy the stuff that’s hard for us to make—or at least hard to make cheaply. We export because that’s the only way to get imports.
This essay appeared on the Foreign Policy website on November 19, 2007.
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