Listening - What Are Tariffs, and How Do They Work?

Watch the video and complete the activities below.

ACTIVITIES

Activity 1: True, False, or Not Given

Decide if the following statements are True, False, or Not Given according to the video.

1. President Herbert Hoover’s 20% tax on imported goods successfully reduced unemployment in the United States.

True

False

Not Given

2. More than 1,000 economists publicly supported the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act before it was passed.

True

False

Not Given

3. Importers typically absorb the cost of tariffs without increasing the prices for everyday consumers.

True

False

Not Given

4. In 2018, the United States imposed tariffs on washing machines to protect domestic manufacturers specifically from European competitors.

True

False

Not Given

5. The 2018 trade war with China resulted in higher prices for American consumers and a slight decrease in the US GDP.

True

False

Not Given

Activity 2: Multiple Choice

Choose the correct option for each question based on what you heard.

1. What is the primary definition of a tariff according to the video?

a) A tax paid by foreign exporters to sell their products globally.

b) A tax paid by an importer to bring foreign goods into a country.

c) A government subsidy given to domestic manufacturers.

d) A limit on the number of products that can be imported per year.

2. What was the final result of the 2002 US tariffs on imported steel?

a) The US gained more jobs in steel-producing industries than it lost in steel-related industries.

b) US domestic industries using steel were able to lower their product prices.

c) The US lost far more jobs in industries that used steel than it gained in steel production.

d) Foreign manufacturers stopped using cheap steel to compete with US industries.

3. How did China retaliate against the US tariffs in 2018?

a) By increasing the prices of Chinese electronics sold in the US.

b) By taxing US exporters, such as farmers relying on Chinese markets for soybeans.

c) By completely stopping all international trade with the United States.

d) By heavily taxing American washing machines and wool.

4. What was the main purpose of most tariffs in the 18th and early 19th centuries?

a) To trigger global chain reactions in the economy.

b) To punish rival nations during times of war.

c) To primarily raise government funds.

d) To completely eliminate international trade.

5. Why are the consequences of tariffs so much harder to predict in the modern global economy?

a) Because manufacturing components are imported more than ever to make consumer goods.

b) Because governments no longer use tariffs to raise any revenue.

c) Because modern trade agreements have eliminated all taxes on agricultural products.

d) Because consumers simply refuse to pay higher prices for imported goods.

Activity 3: Gap Fill

Listen carefully to the video and fill in the blanks with the correct words from the box below.

deficit domestic interdependent retaliated revenue

1. Hoover believed that making foreign goods more expensive would encourage consumers to buy , thus funneling cash into American businesses.

2. Hoover's plan backfired when other countries by taxing American goods.

3. The tariff on washing machines created some jobs and raised roughly $82 million in government .

4. In 2018, the US attempted to address its trade with China by taxing Chinese goods.

5. Over the last 200 years, our global economy has become far more , meaning a simple tariff can trigger a global chain reaction.