Who Will Pay the Price for Trump’s Economic Goals? - WSJ


Explaining what President Trump really wants has become a thriving industry in its own right, often proved wrong as soon as it is published. Two things are clear about his tariff policy, however: He wants a lower trade deficit and he wants investment to rebuild U.S. manufacturing. True believers who think he might achieve those goals should think through what else has to happen as a result.The starting point is the balance of payments, the broadest measure of trade and investment in and out of the economy. Its two sides have to balance: the current account, which tallies up trade flows and some other stuff not worth getting into; and the capital and financial accounts, which measure, well, capital and money flowing in and out to buy things such as stocks and bonds and investments in factories.

Copyright ©2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

🧠 Pro Tip

Skip the extension — just come straight here.

We’ve built a fast, permanent tool you can bookmark and use anytime.

Go To Paywall Unblock Tool
Sign up for a free account and get the following:
  • Save articles and sync them across your devices
  • Get a digest of the latest premium articles in your inbox twice a week, personalized to you (Coming soon).
  • Get access to our AI features

  • Save articles to reading lists
    and access them on any device
    If you found this app useful,
    Please consider supporting us.
    Thank you!

    Save articles to reading lists
    and access them on any device
    If you found this app useful,
    Please consider supporting us.
    Thank you!