Dollar & Sense: The Brookings Trade Podcast

Are Southeast Asian nations being forced to choose between China and the United States on issues like infrastructure, trade, and security? That’s one of the key questions explored in this episode as host David Dollar interviews Jonathan Stromseth, the Lee Kuan Yew Chair in Southeast Asian Studies and a senior fellow at Brookings. Dollar and Stromseth tackle a variety of related issues, including the Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy of the Trump administration; the effect that China’s economic engagement in the region—in particularly its Belt and Road Imitative—has on governance and democracy; and specific cases like Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Elizabeth Rosenberg, a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, joins David Dollar to discuss the role financial and economic sanctions play in U.S. foreign policy. Their conversation outlines how sanctions have been imposed against Iran and North Korea, why the U.S. is uniquely positioned to use sanctions as an instrument, the strength of the dollar, and concerns with sanctions being overused as a means for reaching diplomatic ends. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

In a special episode of Dollar & Sense, Senior Fellow David Dollar provides an update on the state of U.S.-China trade talks following the latest round of negotiations in Washington this week. Dollar explains recent escalations and the new tariffs imposed by the Trump administration, what to anticipate as negotiations move forward, and new research on the impact tariffs have on U.S. firms and the economy. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Deborah Brautigam, director of the China Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies, joins Senior Fellow David Dollar to discuss China’s Belt and Road Initiative and its implications for Africa. Brautigam and Dollar address the scale of Chinese financing in Africa and around the world, debt-trap diplomacy, labor issues, and much more.  Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Robert Koopman, the chief economist at the World Trade Organization (WTO), joins Senior Fellow David Dollar to discuss the role global value chains play in world trade and the effects they have on developing economies, advanced economies, and the WTO. Their conversation draws from a new report published by the WTO and its partners which summarizes research on global value chains and the implications of emerging technologies. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Amanda Sloat, the Robert Bosch Senior Fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe, joins host David Dollar to give an update on Brexit. She explains why Brexit did not occur as originally expected on March 29; what the process for UK Prime Minister Theresa May, Parliament, and the EU looks like going forward; and important issues such as the Irish border, the UK's potential for pursuing an independent trade policy, the "Norway model," implications of a "no-deal" Brexit, and the possibility of a second referendum. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Ernesto Zedillo, former president of Mexico and now director of the Yale Center for the Study of Globalization, talks with David Dollar about the importance of globalization for developing countries, the erosion of multilateralism, NAFTA and its proposed replacement—the USMCA—and other issues on trade. Dollar also asks Zedillo whether President Trump’s push to build a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico is damaging the bilateral relationship. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Wendy Cutler, vice president of The Asia Society Policy Institute and former acting deputy U.S. trade representative, joins David Dollar to discuss the structural issues in the U.S.-China trade negotiations and how a trade agreement between the two countries could be enforced. Cutler and Dollar explain the enforcement mechanisms at the administration’s disposal, the issues of intellectual property rights and state enterprises, and much more. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

In a special episode of Dollar and Sense, David Dollar provides an update on the current state of U.S.-China trade negotiations. He explains why the March 1 deadline to reach a trade deal has been pushed back, what a potential agreement could look like, and how an agreement—once one is made—could be enforced. Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.

Currency values play a critical role in international trade, influencing the profitability of exporting and importing. Large movements in currency values are often controversial, leading to accusations of “manipulation” or even “currency wars.”  In this episode, Janet Yellen, distinguished fellow in residence with the Economic Studies Program and former chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, discusses with host David Dollar the links among monetary policy, exchange rates, and trade. She cites the “taper tantrum” of 2013 and the Chinese devaluation of 2015 as cases where Fed policy and currency markets influenced each other.  Subscribe to Brookings podcasts here or on Apple Podcasts, send feedback email to BCP@Brookings.edu, and follow us and tweet us at @policypodcasts on Twitter. Dollar and Sense is a part of the Brookings Podcast Network.