President-elect Donald Trump is threatening to impose tariffs on several countries when he returns to the White House, alleging US trade abuses.
His announcements have sparked backlash and concerns about trade wars around the world, with countries including Mexico and Canada warning they will retaliate for harsh economic policies.
But Americans believe that most countries have acted fairly when it comes to trade with the US – with one major exception.
According to exclusive polling for DailyMail.com conducted by JL Partners, only 20 percent of voters believe China has acted fairly when it comes to trade, while 59 percent say this is not the case.
As a result, more than half of voters would be in favor of imposing tariffs on Beijing, despite strong concerns that the measure would raise prices.
That’s a dramatic difference from other countries where more Americans than not believe they have acted fairly.
When it comes to the United Kingdom, 50 percent of Americans believe they have acted fairly on trade, while only 20 percent believe they have not.
53 percent of Americans believe Canada has acted fairly, while only 24 percent believe it has not.
46 percent of Americans believe Japan and European Union countries such as France and Germany have treated the U.S. fairly on trade, while only 25 percent say such countries do not.
More Americans than not also believe that Mexico has treated the U.S. fairly on trade (39 to 32 percent).
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The polls show that some opinions on trade are divided along party lines.
While 53 percent of voters believe Canada has treated the U.S. fairly on trade, 70 percent of Democrats and 47 percent of independents do so, but only 40 percent of Republicans.
However, the majority of Republicans still believe the US has been treated fairly by Canada (40 to 39 percent).
While 39 percent of voters believe Mexico has treated the U.S. fairly on trade, only 25 percent of Republicans believe so, while 52 percent of Republicans do not.
However, there are more Democrats and Independents who believe that Mexico has treated the US fairly on trade.
This means that 52 percent of voters strongly or somewhat support tariffs on China.
But while more voters than do not believe that other countries have treated the U.S. fairly on trade, in most cases more voters than do not still want tariffs.
41 percent support tariffs on Mexico, while 30 percent oppose them. 37 percent support tariffs on European Union countries, while 30 percent do not.
37 percent support tariffs on Canada, while 33 percent do not.
The poll was conducted from January 10 to 12 among 1,009 registered voters. The margin of error was 3.4 percent.
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It comes as Trump has threatened a wide range of tariffs targeting multiple countries, including the US’s major trading partners.
During his campaign, Trump promised to give China a 60 percent hit. After the elections, he threatened 10 percent additional tariffs on Chinese imports.
He has also claimed he would impose 25 percent tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada if they do not meet his demands to crack down on drugs and illegal immigration across U.S. borders.
Both countries have warned they will respond with retaliatory tariffs if the president-elect follows through with his threats, sparking a trade war.
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Trump has threatened tariffs across the board, but he has specifically singled out China, Mexico and Canada for additional tariffs since winning the election
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Economists have warned that tariffs on top U.S. trading partners would raise prices for American consumers, but Trump’s Treasury secretary nominee signaled support for his plans.
During a Senate confirmation hearing on Thursday, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oreg.) rejected the blanket tariffs, arguing that small businesses and workers in the U.S. would be hit with additional taxes.
“They will be paid for by our workers and small businesses. Throughout the campaign we heard that this was not the case: foreign countries were going to pay,” Wyden said. ‘I think that’s nonsense!’
But Trump’s pick to lead the Treasury Department rejected that the tariffs would ultimately become a consumption tax on Americans already facing higher prices.
“If we were to say, use the number that has been thrown around in the press of 10 percent, the currency traditionally appreciates at 4 percent, so the 10 percent doesn’t get passed on,” Bessent claimed. ‘Then we have different elasticities.’
Wyden responded that Bessent had a very “academic vision” and that history has shown that it “tricks people of modest means.”
Trump also wrote in a social media post that he would launch an “External Revenue Service,” but that creating an agency that would collect revenue from tariffs would require an act of Congress.
The US also already has the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency, which is charged with facilitating trade and collecting import duties.