Australia must keep its hands clean and walk the talk on free trade
The government is right to reject retaliatory tariffs: international trade and investment are simply too vital to the Australian economy for this to be a good option.
If there is one thing that almost all economists agree upon, it is that tariffs are a harmful form of taxation, hurting both the country that imposes them, as well as the countries whose imports they are imposed upon.
As taxes on imported goods, tariffs are paid mainly by those who buy imports – in other words, the average consumer.
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Danielle Wood is the chairwoman of the Productivity Commission.
Alex Robson is deputy chairman of the Productivity Commission
