Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act

Definition of "Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act"
  1. An act that increased import duties significantly, contributing to the global economic decline in the 1930s. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act was passed by the House of Representatives in 1929 to protect domestic industries, including those that were older. It indirectly led to a loss of confidence in Wall Street. The act, along with the decreased availability of gold and foreign currency, had dire consequences. It led to other countries imposing similarly high tariffs and the collapse of established banks abroad. The Smoot-Hawley tariff is still sometimes mentioned today to demonstrate the harmful impact of protectionist policies
How to use "Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act" in a sentence
  1. Economists attribute the economic instability of the 1930s, in part, to the repercussions from the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act.
  2. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act was a response to economic struggles, but it inadvertently made things much worse.
  3. The ramifications of the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act offer a lesson on the potential downsides of protectionism.

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