David Ricardo

Ricardo's comparative advantage explains why it pays for countries to specialize and trade, which is the economic logic behind global sourcing and the import flows that feed US warehouses. Using England's cloth and Portugal's wine, he showed both countries gain from trade even if one is better at producing everything. The argument underlies free trade agreements and the case against high tariffs. When a brand weighs landed cost from an overseas factory against domestic production, or tracks how tariffs and duty rates change that math, it is working through the trade-offs Ricardo described.

• Landed CostTotal cost to get a product ready to sell
• Harmonized Tariff ScheduleHTSUS product codes that set import duty rates
• Country of OriginCountry where goods were made

• The Wealth of Nations1776 · Adam Smith argues for division of labor and free trade
• U.S.-China Trade War2018–2020 · Section 301 tariffs hit most imports from China

• Repeal of the Corn Laws1846 · 1846 UK repeal of grain tariffs that began free trade

1. Principles of Political Economy and Taxation (Mises Wiki) wiki.mises.org
2. Ricardo, David (Encyclopedia.com) encyclopedia.com