The Opium War: The Original Trade War
Apr 16, 2025•55 min
Episode description
It’s been two weeks since President Donald Trump declared war on the global economic system his predecessors painstakingly built up since 1945. Then he partially reversed course, paused most of the tariffs, and focused on China. In this episode, we dive into the last time the world’s most populous country was in a trade war with the world’s richest country. What do the British Empire’s Opium Wars of the 1800s tell us about America’s pending economic divorce with China?
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Producers:
Alex Miller, Poppy Damon and Bobby Moriarty
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