The coming trade war revisited
Back in January I published an article entitled "The coming trade war " . That was on our Grouply site . As a result it has long been consigned to the byte bucket . Here was the initial link I posted back then :
http://www.salon.com/technology/feature/2011/08/12/eu_airline_carbon_emissions
[Let me know if you want more details . ] But time marches on and so do events . The latest events really do seem to suggest an imminent trade war .
There are all the elements in place :
2 adamant opponents ; the Euro Zone vs India and China .
A unilateral insistence on fines levied in unbalanced quantities .
A "high moral stance" turned into a revenue collection scheme .
A rapidly approaching deadline , June 15 .
The entire update is posted below for your perusal :
India may retaliate in carbon tax row
Plans to bar Europe carriers if EU goes ahead with emission fee system
AFP & Dow Jones Published: 00:00 May 27, 2012 Gulf News New Delhi:
India said it may stop European carriers from flying into the country if the European Union bans airlines from the South Asian nation that boycott the EU's new emissions fee system. "We will take retaliatory actions to counter steps taken by the EU. If Europe bans our carriers we will ban theirs as well," the senior government official, who did not want to be named, told reporters late Friday. The EU in mid-May gave India and China a month to comply with the airline carbon emissions fee system across the 27-nation bloc, or face penalties for flights into and out of Europe. EU Commissioner for Climate Change Connie Hedegaard said all EU airlines and "nearly all" world airlines had agreed to hand over emissions data required under the controversial carbon levy that took effect on January 1. "There has been a very, very high level of compliance... the only exception is Chinese and Indian carriers," she said earlier this month. While some 1,200 airlines have complied with the EU requirements, eight Chinese and two Indian airlines representing less than three per cent of aviation emissions in the bloc have refused.
Unilateral trade
India and China have attacked the EU scheme, calling it a unilateral trade levy disguised as an attempt to fight climate change. India in April barred its airlines from complying with the EU carbon fee, joining China in resistance. The EU says the tax aims to help it achieve a goal of cutting emissions by 20 per cent by 2020 and has said no airline will face a bill until 2013 after this year's carbon emissions have been tallied. It says the cost for the airlines is manageable, calculating that the scheme could force the carriers to add between 4 (Dh18.39) and 24 to the price of a long-haul round-trip. European authorities have warned that the Chinese and Indian carriers could face penalties if they fail to submit data by an extended deadline of June 15. European authorities said that, as a final measure, banning repeat offenders could be considered.
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So ... what are the possibilities that this trade war breaks out just when the EU suffers a large financial collapse ? More importantly would that make the trade war have a larger effect than it would otherwise have ? Could it get more "interesting" ...
BTW no one has asked how to play this as a stock trade ...
Well Mike , it's not all that grim . For one thing this trade war is likely to be restricted to India vs the Euro Union .
It doesn't look like China will be taking part because they will likely get a pass from Europe . Why ?
[[Since Europe does not want that, and therefore does not really want an effective reduction in fuel use, then it is revenue under the guise of saving the planet.]]
That's the way I see it too .
[[Is there a difference in the number of Indian planes going to Europe and the number of European planes going to India, such that reciprocal payments would not offset ]]
This is just a guess but I think India is trying to encourage as much incoming travel as possible . Establishing such fines would discourage that travel especially among those of modest means . I expect that is more of a problem among Indians than among Europeans [on average] .
Yes Mike . They did and I think we already are paying . We initially contested it but it seems that our complaints have been withdrawn . I find that surprising considering how much the airlines are hurting for profits .
The latest news on this issue from China :
Chinese airlines will snub a mid- June deadline for submitting carbon-emissions data to the European Union and anticipate that any fines or bans would be met with retaliatory measures.
The China Air Transport Association expects that the Chinese government will impose similar penalties on European airlines swiftly after any EU action, Secretary General Wei Zhenzhong said yesterday in an interview in Beijing. The group, whose members include Chinas big three state-controlled carriers, hopes a trade dispute can be avoided, he said.
The European Commission has already given Chinese and Indian airlines an extra two and half months to submit 2011 emissions data as it tries to avoid a trade spat with the worlds two most-populous countries. The Asian nations have led multinational opposition to the addition of intercontinental flights to a European-run emissions-trading system because of concerns about cost and sovereignty.
The latest news on this issue from India : Oops , that was from the UAE ...my error .
BEIJING // The world is slipping into a global trade war because the European Union refuses to back down over a decision to impose a unilateral carbon tax on airliner emissions, the airline industry says.
China, which is currently leading the opposition to the new European emissions charging regime, yesterday threatened immediate retaliation if any of its carriers were issued with fines or bans for snubbing a mid-June deadline for airlines to comply.
"The Chinese government will impose similar penalties on European airlines swiftly after any EU action," warned Wei Zhenzhong, the secretary general of the China Air Transport Association.
Mr Wei was speaking before the opening of the International Air Transport Association (Iata) annual general meeting (AGM) in Beijing, where the EU's continuing insistence on imposing its emissions trading scheme (ETS) was being treated with mounting alarm.
Tony Tyler, the director general and chief executive of Iata, the global airline industry's trade body, said Europe's stance threatened a trade war.
carbon levy
Easy.
Begin by taxing human carbon units, as soon as they come outta the womb. That way they will be used to paying a carbon levy everytime they shit, speak, breath , or otherwise produce carbonfor the rest of their lives.
That reminds me . I haven't produced my allotment of "carbon" for the day . Maybe I'll make up for it tomorrow ... Perhaps the status thing for tomorrow would change from :
"Her $#!+ don't stink" to "Her $#!+ has little carbon" ....
Thanks for resurrecting this old thread Neetu . It appears that the trade war was averted . Here is the latest news that I uncovered about this topic :
[[The European Union (EU) has been forced to freeze the law requiring all flights using EU airports to pay for carbon emissions under the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme.
That means only internal EU flights are bound by its rules, according to news agency Reuters.]]
American workers and Politicians need to wake up. The House of representatives are driving us down the road to economic ruin. Giving tax benifits to companies sending jobs overseas is destroying our economy tax base and middle class the 95%.
The house of representatives continues to be the best politicians money can buy. And believe it they are bought and payed for by Corporate America.