I have been living in Japan for the past 18 years and I can count on one hand the total number of imported cars from the US I see in a month.  Imports from the US are taxed at least doubled which in turn highly protects their own market.  This in an awesome idea... just wondering why the same is not implied in the US?  I am sure it is the same situation in China, if not worse.
135766
A very good question. Here are my thoughta.\n\nFirst the US is running a trade deficit with those countries, which means that they are selling less than they are buying, however with each of these countries, they are taking the extra money they gat and investing in US debt (bond T-notes etc.) So the money flows back into the US and creates demand for their currency. If the US changed their policy, then this influx of money and investment would dry up, creating a situation where the US would have to raise the interest they pay on their government debt, which would slow down the economy, which would put people out of work, which would create more need for US debt, which would mean they would have to raise rates again. And this would become the death spiral that Japan has gone through for the last 10-12 years.\n\nHope this helps.
145100
American automakers cannot beat the Japanese because they refuse to change their marketing strategy, focusing on SUV sales which were awesome in the 90's but flag due to high gas prices. The Japanese have chosen to provide fuel economical vehicles NOW as opposed to promising to come out with them in 2008, 2010, 2020 like American automakers are doing.
192625
Great!!\nGood criticism.\nI think that China has such powerful econimic policies that even the US firms have opened their offices in China.\nThey have such a cheap manpower that every company would like to work in China and probably this is the reason that even the US stickers are made in China.
16075
The Economist ran a contest in 2004 that adressed that very question.  In my analysis (I submitted an entry) I mentioned several examples around the subject which was import workers or export jobs.  If jobs are exported, the playing field, for it to be "fair" to workers who lose their jobs in the USA or otherwise see deflationary pay, then the "rules" need to be fair overseas.  Just as how American workers compete with Indian, Chinese, and other countries for jobs, so should those very Indians, Chinese, and other countries.  In other words, jobs sent overseas to, say, India, need to be made available to ALL Indians, not just routed through specific agencies, employers, and arms of some overseas entity.  This way, fair competition rules that apply in North America are exported.  In other words, both the jobs (and technologies, ultimately) as well as the framework under which those very jobs were created in the first place, are exported.  Thus elevating standards of living while raising costs - which make for a fairer assessment of whether or not it makes sense to export the jobs in the first place.
17152
It seems to me that almost everything that the US uses is made in another country. This in turns makes up dependent upon foreign countries for things we could make in the US. The funny thing about this is the US people would not work for the same wages that the foreign people are paid to do such taxing , monotonous work. Have you ever heard anyone request subpar conditions and $0.15 a day in the US??? I doubt it.....
424574
If these laws are able to be enforced in china, then why do they not appear to be able to enforce them elsewhere in the west? sorry i answered your question with a question
149310
Americans aren't concerned about other Americans, or sending $$$$ overseas if they can save a buck.  That communist china is using the $$$$ to build their military, people don't care. \n\nWalmart is a good example.   Another is the way the corporations are outsourcing thousands of jobs to third world countries like Mexico, Philippines and India.
136853
You've tapped a very complicated subject my friend - I think all of macro economics is vague and all of the smartest economists don't agree on what is going on... So I don't think it is intentionally vague - any more than the rest of the economic field....  Also China owning US debt began when they became part of the WTO (I believe this may have happened on Bush's watch, but was started by Clinton - i.e. not a republican/democrat thing.) I don't know how easy it will be to find - but seems like to answer your specific question you would want to understand the ownership of US treasury securities.  If you are just curious and want to know about this stuff - China does hold a large portion of our debt and that is because we spend more money than we have and they save more money than they make.  We have trade deficit with China because we want to buy their goods, because they are cheap.  In the past they have been more than happy to lend us the money to do so.  But if we don't watch it, our creditors are going to start saying no.  The opinion of congress right now is that this is China's fault and that they are a currency manipulator who should let their currency appreciate.
422044
i knew a company in Taiwan that sold some goods to a USA company for about 40k USD. the USA company did not pay. they traveled to north carolina and took that company to court in the USA. the judge threw the case out because he said the Taiwan company did not have a USA office and they had no rights in the USA. but that was that case. yours maybe different.
586575
Given the difficulties of the EU at the moment, it would be wisest to position as a European brand and develop it independently of the global brand. It would much like the Lexus introduction in the late 80s which separated it from the stigma of being a "Japanese car" and created a very successful new luxury car market during a recession
228400
Well, it is a double standard. They started the war because of "weapons of mass destruction", where are these weapons? I am sure America have more weapons of mass destruction in their own country, in fact the USA is the only country who has ever used such weapons (Japan). It is obvious that it is not about sorting out the Middle East, because now there are even more problems over there. Either Bush is "Satan", or just plain stupid. Or a mixture of both.
187269
U.S. has a multi-million dollar trade deficit to China. 1/2 the stuff in your home has, "Made in China" stamped/stickered on the back. They are mass producing everything. Yes, many of the items labeled that way are produced in Taiwan, which is still technically part of China. The reason they are growing so quickly is because of your own noted, "growth at all costs ideology". People in China work for China. People in U.S. work for themselves, their own promotion. Education here has taken a sharp turn for the worse, so next generation of workers may not be as shrewd or competitive.
240799
Why should it? I look at where things are made from before I buy them. Don't you? Its called free trade. What our country is based upon. America was built by the Chinese also, think about the first railroad system bringing on the industrial revolution. There is a lot more to America than you care to know. Which is very little. Many Germans fought FOR the US also as did many Chinese. Not all are as you say.\nYou are blinded by hate.
88201
I've spent a lot of time in Asian countries. The main reason for the masks is due to pollution. Mainly diesel exhaust, since many more vehicles there use it, and also because they don't have the air quality standards that are found in the U.S.
459730
I think I would show the statistics for "people studying Chinese in the US is drastically on the rise" and information on the WTO.  I would spell out US (United States), WTO (World Trade Organization), and HK (Hong Kong).  Why do you think the trend toward learning Chinese, French, or German is on the rise among young Chinese Americans?  There are a few points you could elaborate upon with statistics or background information.
390328
IHave wondered the same thing. I think it is due to the influx of merchandise in the retail stores from China and India, etc. It seems like everything we are buying is from Asia. And don't anybody say buy American, the prices of American made goods are outrageous compared to foreign ones. I wouldn't be able to make it if I had to buy only American and most people wouldn't either.
437187
Yes, for example the Japanese traditionally don't eat a lot of beef.....the American beef council has been trying to capture a share of the Japanese beef market for years. \nIn size the state of Texas is larger than the country of Japan....in Texas people generally don't prefer smaller cars like the Toyota Corolla and Tercel....but larger more roomy ones, that are more comfortable to drive longer distances; in Japan where the roads are more narrow and the distances driven aren't as far the smaller cars are the most common and preferred....since American car makers don't really have an adequate product they have always had difficulty selling cars in Japan. IMHO...BUT....\nThere are different shopping habits in the western countries....remember Wal-Mart failed in Germany but is very big in the US.