[ahepp]

Buying a TV manufactured in China still stimulates the US economy, doesn't it? It's 2021, supply chains are global for a lot of products.

You could just as easily disparage paying rent by saying "it's great news for my landlord". Personally, I think Chinese industrialists and workers do more to earn the money.

The stimulating effect comes from spending it, no? I'm not worried about what my neighbors are spending the money on. We citizens and dollar-savers pay the bill through taxation/inflation, in a progressive manner. I don't see a moral hazard.

[azurezyq]

For TV, I think there's really not much manufactured in US. Maybe Android TV / roku TV subscriptions?

https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2016/mar/14/donald-tru...

If you look at it closely, display panels are mostly manufactured in Asia. And a Chinese company (BOE) is the leader in the market:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/1124858/global-display-p....

[ahepp]

I would be shocked if any component of consumer TVs was manufactured or assembled in the US.

But if it was sold in a US store, from a US wholesaler, transported across the US, designed by US engineers, etc, it still seems like it would stimulate the economy.

I was under the impression not much is truly manufactured here in the US any more. What are you going to buy, thousands of dollars worth of My Pillows?

I'm no economist, but my understanding is that paying down debt (universally considered a responsible use of money, as opposed to TV purchasing) is actually one of the least stimulating ways to spend money. You're effectively just hoping that the lender is going to spend the money on something stimulating instead of yourself.

[benjohnson]

The US is in second place behind China for manufacturing output. US manufacturing often goes unnoticed as we tend to produce expensive things - like jet engines, spacecraft, processors, and medical devices.

[baybal2]

And it is also goes usually unnoticed how funny is the accounting of US manufacturing output.

From accounting the whole value of the widget, and not just added value from manufacturing processes if inputs are imported, effectively, already pre-assembled (this is how I believe all "Made in USA" TVs are made.)

Factoring in obscene IP value as a "material" component along with some bs called "goodwill."

The "realisation" of revenue across borders, and so on, and on, and on.

[imtringued]

I think his point is that there are lots of American brands that are produced in China. Maybe not for TVs but for other gadgets. The factory in China gets a pittance while the American company gets most of the profits.