this post was submitted on 04 Apr 2025
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What are we getting from the USA that we can't get anywhere else?
A lot of what we import from the US is machinery, im assuming its specialized machinery that is designed to work together with other products from that company as the US is notorious for closed eco systems. If we tariff the US then we are forcing our businesses to pay extra for those machines or pay the cost of refitting their entire fleet. Doing this at a time when markets are crashing and uncertainty is high is in my opinion supremely stupid.
I'm all for trying to hurt the US but nz returning the tariffs doesn't hurt the US since the cost is paid by nz buisness. The US hurt themselves already by putting tariffs on us. NZ can chill and do its own thing, we can weather this storm pretty easily. The US has stabbed us in the back and even without tariffs I can bet that NZ businesses will be looking for non US suppliers where possible.
I wish you could be a little more specific. What kind of machinery? Which businesses will be harmed? Are there really no alternatives to these machines?
tariffs would add some incentive for them to do this.
To give one example, automation equipment.
Sure there are alternatives, but changing is the work of years and millions of dollars, just to get what you are currently getting. For big plants, in may be it the 10's of millions.
A large percentage of the NZ automation market is using Rockwell gear, an American company.
Well they should be encouraged to stop relying on the USA for their well being.
That is not really an option.
If I was advising someone building a new plant today, I'd tell them to go European.
Probably Siemens for the most part, Schneider is also an option, but their engineering environment sucks more than Siemens.
Unfortunately Rockwell has the best software, from a software engineering point of view. No serious open source options in the industrial space yet.
If people are willing to become dependent on a particular vendor for their survival they get no sympathy from me.
I'm not sure you understand industrial automation.
Maybe not but my point stands. If the future of your company is dependent on one vendor you fucked up.