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0 pointsTaylorAlexander3y ago0 comments

Also huge tariffs on Asian solar panels cuts demand.

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Tariffs are a thing, but there is absolutely no shortage of demand right now, and hasn't been for a while.

It's a bit more insidious than that, because uncertainty on the part of the importer means that they don't know how much to charge. A tariff action in the future can be assessed on past sales, and when you don't know how much can be assessed, you can't even really hedge or buy and then give rebates later. It's a really fucked up situation.

ajross3y ago

That may be so, but it remains the case that every wafer that comes out of a solar panel fab gets sold, with a large backlog of demand in every market. And the supply side is responding to that by building out capacity rapidly. Tariffs may or may not be "fucked up" as a matter of principle, but in practice they aren't a barrier.

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TaylorAlexanderOP3y ago

What makes you say there is no shortage of demand? If demand is elastic then lower price would mean more demand. I know that’s just econ101 which is often misleading, but what makes you say otherwise?

soganess3y ago

I only ever took econ 101, so forgive me if I'm missing a subtle point...

Isn't saying that there exists a *shortage* of demand the same as saying that there is available supply but no one is willing to buy at the current price? Thus, by definition, there cannot be a shortage of demand if all units are being purchased at the current price?

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