Trade Deal with China Won't Give Many U.S. Companies Relief

From the Rust Belt to the Pacific Northwest and from the Gulf Coast to Niagara Falls, the outlook could not have been brighter for American chemical companies. Then President Trump nearly two years ago launched his trade war with China. On Wednesday, Trump and Chinese Vice Premier Liu He are scheduled to sign a partial trade deal, calling a truce in a conflict that has shaken the global economy. Yet as the chemical industry's experience shows, many of the trade war's casualties have been left on the battlefield. Even as the White House celebrates the president's negotiating accomplishment, the "phase one" deal offers little relief for countless American businesses - including chemical makers, apparel retailers and auto parts manufacturers - that will still face the same punishing tariffs they have confronted for some time.