Ext User(Marco)
16-07-2007, 12:53 AM
On Jul 15, 1:47 pm, Peelah Ben Arhna <benar...@yahoo.com.au> wrote:
>
> How can lowering tariffs make say, Ford Australia, GM/H or Toyota's
> Australian manufacturing operations more globally competitive? Certainly,
> it won't help its domestic market.
Forces the local product to compete with imported cars, basically -
the end result of which would either be an improvement in the local
product, or the end of the local product.
The experience over the past 20 years or so would suggest an
improvement in the local product has been the case, to the point where
the local product is now exported. And you couldn't say that 20 years
ago.
> Someone should ask Mr. McFarlane what the import tariffs on cars that
> countries such as Japan, the US and Europe have in place, and whether ours
> are higher or lower.
It would be an interesting question, but a fairly irrelevant one
unless we're specifically trying to sell cars to those countries.
> It all gets back to the touted "level playing field" that proponents of
> globalisation push. In practice it seems that is rarely the case.
It doesn't exist as things currently stand - you only have to look at
EU and US farm subsidies for proof of that. Doesn't mean it's not a
good idea though.
Marco
>
> How can lowering tariffs make say, Ford Australia, GM/H or Toyota's
> Australian manufacturing operations more globally competitive? Certainly,
> it won't help its domestic market.
Forces the local product to compete with imported cars, basically -
the end result of which would either be an improvement in the local
product, or the end of the local product.
The experience over the past 20 years or so would suggest an
improvement in the local product has been the case, to the point where
the local product is now exported. And you couldn't say that 20 years
ago.
> Someone should ask Mr. McFarlane what the import tariffs on cars that
> countries such as Japan, the US and Europe have in place, and whether ours
> are higher or lower.
It would be an interesting question, but a fairly irrelevant one
unless we're specifically trying to sell cars to those countries.
> It all gets back to the touted "level playing field" that proponents of
> globalisation push. In practice it seems that is rarely the case.
It doesn't exist as things currently stand - you only have to look at
EU and US farm subsidies for proof of that. Doesn't mean it's not a
good idea though.
Marco