Just a week after announcing with great fanfare the “Day of Liberation” and imposing tariffs on imports from over 100 countries, including territories inhabited only by penguins, Donald Trump was forced to withdraw his erratic plan and announce a 90-day pause.
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Since that April 2nd, global markets collapsed, reacting negatively to a decision that few understood. Even Republican lawmakers criticized the measure for its inflationary risks and a likely recession.
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Wall Street recorded its worst drop since the Covid pandemic, only this time the crisis was not caused by a virus.
Indeed, Trump escalated his trade war against China and increased the tax rate on imports from the Asian giant to 125%.
Trump in less than 24 hours: from mockery to pausing tariffs
Just last night, Trump was boastfully and rudely bragging about his tariffs and claiming that leaders from around the world were calling him to make a deal.
“I tell you, these countries are calling us and kissing my ass,” said Trump during a speech at the National Republican Congressional Committee Dinner in Washington. “They are dying to make a deal. ‘Please, please, sir, make a deal. I will do whatever, sir,‘” he seemed to mockingly imitate one of those supposed leaders who called him.
In the last few days, Trump had also escalated his tone to say that he would not change his position on tariffs despite the collapse of Wall Street, and he claimed it was like the treatment that sick people receive.
“Don’t be stupid...don’t be weak,” Trump said on social media in response to the fears generated by the stock market crash. He even invented a word that doesn’t exist in English, “panican,” which he later explained seemed to refer to an invention that mixes “panic” with “republican”: “It’s a new party based on weak and stupid people.”
In that way, he seemed to be responding to members of his party, the Republicans, who also began to criticize the tariffs.
However, this Wednesday, April 9, just one week after the “Day of Liberation,” Trump had to backtrack on his global tariffs and all his recent statements and posts.
“Based on the fact that more than 75 countries have called representatives from the United States... to negotiate a solution regarding the issues being discussed in relation to trade...I have authorized a 90-day pause, and a substantially reduced reciprocal tariff during this period, of 10%, effective immediately,” wrote Trump on Truth Social.
This 10% universal, means a great relief for several countries, such as Cambodia and Vietnam, which were hit with tariffs of 49% and 46%, respectively.
In an attempt to lend credibility to Trump’s decisions, the White House came out to say that this was part of a “strategy.” Karoline Leavitt, the Press Secretary, criticized the media for having “failed to see what President Trump is doing here,” and Scott Bessent, the Treasury Secretary, stated that this had been “Trump’s strategy from the beginning.”
The precise details of the United States government’s plans to ease tariffs on non-China trading partners were not immediately clear.
The trade war against China is escalating
Trump did double down on his bet in the trade war against China.
In the same post where he announced the pause of tariffs against the rest of the countries, he also stated that “based on the lack of respect that China has shown towards global markets, I am hereby increasing the tariff that the United States of America charges China to 125%, effective immediately”.
Wall Street jumped after Trump’s announcement
Global markets surged just minutes after Trump’s post on his social media at 1:18 pm on Wednesday, April 9th.
The main stock market indices surged. The Nasdaq rose nearly 9%, the S&P 500 increased by about 8%, and the Dow Jones Industrial rose by 6%.
At the same time, oil, an indicator of development and growth, rose to 61 dollars, erasing the losses of the past few days.