patrick.net

https://www.coffeeandcovid.com/p/trumped-tuesday-february-4-2025-c

Despite dark Democrat predictions of doom and financial apocalypse, the Trump tariffs did not result in a global trade war yesterday. The AP ran the story headlined, “Trump agrees to pause tariffs on Canada and Mexico after they pledge to boost border enforcement.” It was that easy.

The “deal,” if you can call the short stay of execution a deal, involved substantial commitments from both North American countries to deepen their investments in border security in exchange for a one-month delay in the tariffs.

What may really be happening is that, having gotten Mexico and Canada to their first “yes,” Trump plans to continue renegotiating the main trade agreement from his first term, the USMCA, which replaced the previous long-standing agreement, NAFTA. The negotiations have to be framed in terms of emergency border protection and drug enforcement, so Trump can keep using his emergency powers to dicker about the money.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the tariff standoff with China was not resolved yesterday. Not yet. The AP’s related story carried the headline, “China counters with tariffs on US products. It will also investigate Google.” Unless there’s a deal, cell phones, which already cost more than a five-day Caribbean cruise, will soon come with mortgage applications.




But China’s counter-tariffs could perhaps be more properly viewed as “negotiating.” According to the AP, “Trump plans to talk with Chinese President Xi Jinping in the next few days.” So we’ll see.

Democrats had hoped for something more … dramatic to complain about. Not this time. The narrative has shrunken to something like, yeah, but anybody could have done that.

Patrick says

Canadian TV did this a few month ago. Before Trump was sworn in. And they nailed it perfectly.

(The below quote will trigger @WookieMan. Beware!)

DOGEWontAmountToShit says

From Canadian TV a couple of months ago.

They called it!

Patrick says

Newsflash: it's possible to transport oil and gas via pipeline going through another country while not selling any of it to the said country.

RWSGFY says

Newsflash: it's possible to transport oil and gas via pipeline going through another country while not selling any of it to the said country.

If it enters the country, it's an import. Period.

DOGEWontAmountToShit says

RWSGFY says

Newsflash: it's possible to transport oil and gas via pipeline going through another country while not selling any of it to the said country.

If it enters the country, it's an import. Period.

Not under CUSMA it's not. Or rarher it's not subject to tariffs.

RWSGFY says

Not under CUSMA it's not. Or rarher it's not subject to tariffs.

Prove it. Especially when that oil gets mixed in with ours. <-- gotcha!

DOGEWontAmountToShit says

RWSGFY says

Not under CUSMA it's not. Or rarher it's not subject to tariffs.

Prove it. Especially when that oil gets mixed in with ours. <-- gotcha!

AFAIK that shit (oil, gas, etc) is handled by volume. I.e. they measure how much enters at one side and exits at another. So mixing has nothing to do with it.

DOGEWontAmountToShit says

RWSGFY says

Not under CUSMA it's not. Or rarher it's not subject to tariffs.

Prove it. Especially when that oil gets mixed in with ours. <-- gotcha!

Prove it doesn't. Gotcha more.

Any goods passing through are exempt from the custom duties and tariffs under that agreement. Expand on mixing: who mixes what and why?

RWSGFY says

Expand on mixing: who mixes what and why?

DOGEWontAmountToShit says

RWSGFY says

Expand on mixing: who mixes what and why?

I accept your surrender.

RWSGFY says

I accept your surrender.

Giving up because I don't want to bother with your ignorance on oil pipelines isn't 'surrender'.

The EU is poised to offer lower tariffs on US car imports amid threats from Donald Trump that he is ready to ramp up a global trade war.

Bernd Lange, chairman of the international trade committee in the European Parliament, told the FT that Europe was willing to cut its 10pc tariff on American cars to closer to the 2.5pc charged by the US on equivalent imports from Brussels.

He said: “We can try to have a deal before escalating costs and tariffs”.

He added that the EU would offer to buy more liquefied natural gas (LNG) and defence kit from the US “plus also look to lower tariffs for cars”.

DOGEWontAmountToShit says

RWSGFY says

I accept your surrender.

Giving up because I don't want to bother with your ignorance on oil pipelines isn't 'surrender'.

Yep, you realized you've fucked up on "mixing" and decided to grab your ball and go home to complain to your mommy about "mean kids who don't know pipelines".

🤡

RWSGFY says

Yep, you realized you've fucked up on "mixing"

Nope. You're the one who fucked up.

Classic example of this is the Keystone Pipeline:

Google AI Overview

In the context of the Keystone pipeline, "oil mixing" refers to the blending of different types of crude oil within the pipeline, particularly the mixing of heavier, more viscous Canadian tar sands oil (diluted bitumen or "dilbit") with lighter conventional crude oil from other sources, like the Bakken formation in North Dakota, as it travels through the pipeline to refineries; this mixing can occur at various points along the pipeline route depending on where different oil sources are added.

Key points about oil mixing in the Keystone pipeline:

Different oil types:
The primary oil type transported through the Keystone pipeline is diluted bitumen (dilbit) from Canadian tar sands, which is often mixed with lighter crude oil from other sources to improve its flowability within the pipeline.

Impact on refining:
The mix of different oil types can affect the refining process at the destination, as refineries need to adjust their operations to handle the varied properties of the blended oil.

Mixing can occur but doesn't have to. Pipeline operators are perfectly capable of sending different product in batches, depending on techinical requirements, customs situation, etc. Thre is always some so-called "transmix", but the amount is trivial.

Bottom line: the "mixing" wrt to transit oil is a non-issue.

RWSGFY says

Bottom line: the "mixing" wrt to transit oil is a non-issue.

For oil to be mixed or not, true. For the context we were discussing, it is.

You fucked up.

OkDOGEisAmountingToSomething says

RWSGFY says

Not under CUSMA it's not. Or rarher it's not subject to tariffs.

Prove it. Especially when that oil gets mixed in with ours. <-- gotcha!

Whatever, child. You tried to imply that transiting oil tariff-free is somehow impossible because pipelines go through the US. When pointed that existing trade agreement provides for tariff-free transit of goods from Canada you tried to imply that for oil it's impossible because of "mixing". Which is obviously wrong, because oil can be and regularly is transported in batches.

So to recoup: as it stands now there are no legal or technical obstacles for Canada's oil to be exported tariff-free through pipelines cutting across the US territory. Checkmate, mate.

RWSGFY says

You tried to imply that transiting oil tariff-free is somehow impossible because pipelines go through the US. When pointed that existing trade agreement provides for tariff-free transit of goods from Canada you tried to imply that for oil it's impossible because of "mixing". Which is obviously wrong, because oil can be and regularly is transported in batches.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Canadian oil is purposely mixed in.

OkDOGEisAmountingToSomething says

In the context of the Keystone pipeline, "oil mixing" refers to the blending of different types of crude oil within the pipeline, particularly the mixing of heavier, more viscous Canadian tar sands oil (diluted bitumen or "dilbit") with lighter conventional crude oil from other sources, like the Bakken formation in North Dakota, as it travels through the pipeline to refineries; this mixing can occur at various points along the pipeline route depending on where different oil sources are added.

You have reading problems or what?

I'm on the edge of marking the last two comments as personal.

https://www.coffeeandcovid.com/p/my-valentine-friday-february-14-2025

My goodness, there was so much more. Yesterday the AP ran a world-shaking story headlined, “Trump signs a plan for reciprocal tariffs on US trading partners, ushering in economic uncertainty.” Just wait till you hear this.

“I’ve decided, for purposes of fairness, that I will charge a reciprocal tariff,” Trump said in the Oval Office at the proclamation signing. “Meaning, whatever rates the countries charge the United States of America, we will charge them. No more, no less. In other words, they charge us a tax or tariff, then we charge them the same tax or tariff.”

The President added, “It’s fair to all. No other country can complain. This is something that should have been done many years ago.”

It was another masterstroke. One commenter observed, “If it was a literal earthquake, it would have knocked the planet off its axis.”

It was also the pushback Trump has long promised was coming to Europe. The EU countries thought they knew how to stymie Trump’s’ tariffs. They planned to apply the co-called “Canada model,” by launching trade wars against conservatives and Trump allies, like Tesla, or just the red states.

Their dumb idea was to force maximum political pressure on President Trump, to weaken his support with Americans. He he just ran rings around them.

With reciprocal tariffs, the Canada Model become a hammer they hit themselves in the head with. There’s no point in entering an automatically escalating trade war. You’re just shooting yourself in the foot over and over.

Most likely, this brilliant maneuver will immediately result in lower prices for nearly everything, as countries drop their duties and shed their taxes, VAT surcharges, and tariffs. But if it has to play out, the corporate media headlines will be constantly crying about Trump’s tit-for-tat tariffs, and will cherry-pick examples products here and there with increased prices. See, Mexican tamales now cost $2.79!

They still think we voted for lower prices. It’s practically all they have left to hold onto.

Don’t miss this: We have long subsidized Europeans by paying their unilateral taxes, VATs, and tariffs on all our international trade with them, while we weren’t charging them anything in return. The Europeans have used all that extra money to fund their massive immigration and welfare systems, not to mention undermining the U.S. every chance they got, like during the RussiaGate Hoax.

Soon, they won’t be able to afford all their insane social re-programming. In that sense, Trump’s tariff plan didn’t just help the United States. It’s helping liberate Europe.

OkDOGEisAmountingToSomething says

Wrong, wrong, wrong. Canadian oil is purposely mixed in.

Because there is no tariffs, duh. Once tariffs are in play the oil destined for transit won't be mixed, duh. As stated above there is no technical obstacle for shipping Canadian oil via pipeline networks w/o mixing it with any other.

You're making an ass of yourself in this thread.

'Eric Holder says

Because there is no tariffs, duh...

As stated above there is no technical obstacle for shipping Canadian oil via pipeline networks w/o mixing it with any other.

No. Because the mixed in oil is preferred by our refiners. And since that is happening, there is no way to separate what Canadian oil is merely "passing through" vs being delivered to a US consumer - unlike how one can nominally do so via the batch scheduling for other oil types.

Again: learn to read.

What can be technically done vs what is actually being done are two different things.

You guys were caught red handed trying to pitch the BS that it wasn't. Then you try to pitch more BS in a lame attempt to avoid talking about that because you don't want to admit you were flat out wrong.

That's called 'intellectual dishonesty' if you are doing it on purpose.

It is called 'being an ignorant moron' if you are not.

Just like on the Ukey threads.

Patrick says

I'm on the edge of marking the last two comments as personal.

Let them go at it. Neither are likely in the oil industry and just searching. Both are probably wrong. Similar to real estate threads. They're oil fluffers now.

I think it's funny when people talk about stuff they know nothing about or haven't experienced it at some level. I get shit on in real estate threads by a lot of users that know nothing about the industry at all. Just clickbait bull shit they buy into. I appreciate users that ask questions. I want to see where this goes to be honest as I know neither of them knows dick about the oil industry.

WookieMan says

I think it's funny when people talk about stuff they know nothing about or haven't experienced it at some level.

Then you must laugh a lot over your own comments.

Patrick says

I'm on the edge of marking the last two comments as personal.

Haha.

https://nypost.com/2025/03/11/us-news/ontario-suspends-25-electricity-surcharge-for-us-customers-after-trump-ups-aluminum-steel-tariff/

Ontario suspends 25% electricity surcharge for US customers after Trump ups aluminum, steel tariff

The Tariff Act of 1789 was the first major piece of legislation passed in the USA after the ratification of the United States Constitution. Signed into law by GEORGE WASHINGTON, July 4th, 1989.

Since the 90s, think tanks right and left and libertarian have lied to Americans that Tariffs, which built this country, financed the country and kept us at low/no debt for a century and a half, was somehow alien to our "Spirit", "Anti-American", and "Obsolete". Worse, that it started the Great Depression, or kept us from being "Competitive", when in actuality we industrialized and dominated entire global markets with our exports, with big beautiful tarrifs - BBTs

https://x.com/DC_Draino/status/1907606593509769654

https://x.com/overton_news/status/1907610110320386239

The_Deplorable says

https://x.com/overton_news/status/1907610110320386239

Block how? Japan has no tariff on US-made cars.

Booger says

If getting out of Afghanistan was so good why everybody is so upset about 13 dead Marines, abandoned $80B worth of military hardware and $1B embassy building, not to mention humiliation?

It's the execution, duh.

The act of taking a piss consists of very simple steps: unzip, pull out, pee, tuck in, zip up. Try doing it in a different order and hilarity will ensue.

RWSGFY says

It's the execution, duh.

Done as well as possible given Congress and Activist judges. We have no time to waste. Stock Market was due for a correction + Demographic pressure as Boomers start drawing down.

Exactly what I voted for, action today, not "Just give us a few more seats in the next election". It's shocking how massive GOP majorities were in this Century (with an R President!) but jack and shit got done.

https://www.public.news/p/indifference-to-working-people-behind

AmericanKulak says

Done as well as possible given Congress and Activist judges.

If Congress and activist judges were able to do anything about it (I doubt it) the shit would be reversed and all the pain of layoffs, inflation and even possible stagflation would be for nothing.

And if they are unable, there is no exuse to doing it like that. If he wanted new manufacturing plants in the USA they can't appear overnight. And companies whose valuation was slashed 20-50% will be less able to raise capital to buld them.

Eric Holder says

. If he wanted new manufacturing plants in the USA they can't appear overnight.

Great, all the reason to start today. The journey of 1000 miles begins with the first step.

Eric Holder says

And companies whose valuation was slashed 20-50% will be less able to raise capital to buld them.

If there's one problem the US doesn't have, it is large scale capital financing. When Europeans and Chinese firms come begging, the question will be "But what if tariffs increase? Nah, we'll lend to Ford."

Ford has almost $40B in cash on hand. Tesla also. Amazon has $100B, Berkshire (which owns a ton of companies, #1 RVs mfgs, Louisiana Pacific including essential material IP and production like roof truss plates, etc. etc.) has over $300B in CASH. Brookfield Holdings (lots of Scientific Tool holdings) $20B and many, many others.

You know what happens when you have tens or hundreds of BILLIONS in cash? You finance yourself, or banks fall over themselves to lend at the lowest rate, esp. if they want to diversify out of foreign manufacturers facing tariff environment changes
https://www.tradingview.com/markets/stocks-usa/market-movers-highest-cash/