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Trump’s tariffs: Decline of a superpower
US trade policy and the reckless flaunting of its economic power may lead to an irreversible relative decline of the US as an economic superpower and of US exceptionalism.
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Demonstrators take part in the Hands Off! day of action against the administration of United States President Donald Trump and Elon Musk on April 05, 2025 on the National Mall in Washington, DC. (AFP/Paul Morigi)
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superpower such as the United States is defined by its overwhelming material powers, particularly its military and economic powers. An economic superpower refers primarily to a country’s superior capacities in capital accumulation and in either production or consumption of goods and services or both.
In a rather simplistic depiction, although the US has tremendous production capacities, its economic superpower is more associated with its status as the number-one capital and goods and services market in the world.
The US market is a major export destination for almost all countries in the rest of the world. Other countries such as Japan and China are also referred to as economic superpowers, however both are more known as “the factory of the world”. Their economic superpower status is achieved more from their production and export capacities.
From a power perspective, countries with enormous domestic consumption and market capacities have more leverage compared with countries relying more on their production and export capacities.
The automotive and semi-conductor trade wars between US and Japan in the 1990s; the recent and ongoing trade wars between US-China, US-Canada, US-Mexico as well as between China and Australia are examples of how exporting countries are in a relatively weak position compared with their major export markets.
The imposition of so-called “reciprocal” tariffs by the US on all its trading partners is a clear display of the leverage held by the US as an economic superpower and particularly as the biggest market in the world. However, this trade policy and the reckless flaunting of its economic power may lead to an irreversible relative decline of the US as an economic superpower and of US exceptionalism.
In response to the recent US tariff policy, in the immediate term, its trading partners will pursue negotiations with the US to address its demand to reduce trade imbalances. However, the ongoing events have shown that greater access resulting in over-reliance on the US market is no longer a source of strength and advantage for its trading partners, and instead it is more of a strategic vulnerability.
