Quality Progress

The new tariffs the United States has placed on foreign steel and aluminum and Chinese imports has cost American businesses millions of dollars. Among those hit the hardest are auto manufacturers, retailers and certain markets in the food and beverage industry. How has your organization been affected by these tariffs? What other industries have been affected by these tariffs?

I actually think this could support the increased adoption of Socially Responsible recycling and Circular Economy options.  The existing steel and aluminum in circulation can be captured, reprocessed, and repurposed to not only reduce waste but to offset the financial uncertainties from such tariffs.


When I lived and worked in Hong Kong, bamboo was used for scaffolding and was very effective.  Plant-based structures could emerge as renewable alternatives to industrial imports.  

I totally agree with you Daniel Zrymiak‍ , recycling will actually create more employment for local citizens compared to the import chain. Lindsay Dal Porto‍ However, for us in Africa (Zambia), Its seems China is trying to cushion the impact of the trade war with the US by expanding its trade to Africa in order to save its homeland jobs. However Africa is not comfortable with just receiving factory finished goods,  hence to compensate for the trade imbalance, China has also resorted to importing some commodities from Africa, for example oil from Angola and further it has established some factories in Africa, for example, Chinese truck maker Shaanxi Automobile Group in May started up an Algerian truck assembly plant through a local joint venture and State-owned Beijing Automotive Industry Corp., or BAIC, opened a passenger vehicle assembly plant in South Africa in July. The trade war is actually leading to the restructuring of the World Trade Structure and requires creative thinking in order for  businesses to survive.

I am surprised that ASQ would engage in questions focused on "politics of the moment".  Having said that there are so many variables at play today, with an increasing economy, increased employment, increased consumer demand, and a increasing value of the US dollar that singling out one factor such as the impact of tariffs would be difficult to calculate today, at least in the US and Canada.   If a single factor could be identified as having a biggest impact it is the USD/CAD ratio which is making purchasing goods from the US very much more expensive in Canada.

We should revisit this question a year from now.

M

I am not aware of any impact to my industry at this point.