President Donald Trump's tariffs on imports from China continue to attract opposition from economists and much of the business community. They also may be delivering on at least one goal of the administration's trade wars: reducing imports of targeted products from China.
In a new study, economists at the Institute of International Finance found 25 percent tariffs imposed last summer on a $50 billion list of more than 1,000 products ranging from electric cars to industrial seals and medical imaging machines reduced both the value and volume of those products imported from China.
They also found that 10 percent tariffs on a further $200 billion in imports that took effect in late September had less of an impact and had led to a well-documented pre-tariff surge in imports as companies sought to get ahead of the tariffs.