Most tariffs to the U.S.'s trading partners have been delayed for 90 days — except for the 10 percent baseline duties and additional ones on China, which now has a whopping 125 percent import tax. So, what changed?
The bond markets. The stock market can swing back and forth, but once there is fear about the bond market, which is seen as extremely stable, that's when financial crises can happen.
If you listen to President Trump's team publicly, this was his grand plan all along. Hike tariffs everywhere and then lower them all to create a singular trade war with the U.S.'s biggest trading foe: China. The market drop, the international panic — it was all part of the plan. "BE COOL" and buy stocks now, he even said.
But behind the scenes at the White House, things weren't so rosy. The New York Times reports that his top advisers were panicked over the economic turmoil — and the volatility in the bond market is the straw that ultimately broke the camel's back. His advisers were reportedly left in the dark about his plans until shortly before they were released. National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett acknowledged to CNBC's "Squawk Box" that the bond market likely added "a little more urgency."
The Washington Post reports that late Tuesday night, Trump had an hourlong phone call with a group of Senate Republicans, who expressed concern about Trump's tariff policy.
*Cuts back to public*: Trump now says he was planning to change course for several days. He made his announcement on Truth Social, a post which he says was "written from the heart," not from a team of lawyers. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick dubbed it "one of the most extraordinary Truth posts of his Presidency."
📸 Photo of Trump, Lutnick and Bessent
The tea — Peter Navarro is rubbing some Trump allies the wrong way: The Hill's Alex Gangitano and Al Weaver report that White House trade adviser Peter Navarro has been butting heads with some in Trump World. He doesn't have the best relationships with people in Washington, including Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) who described him as "crass." Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) even referred to him as a "walking, talking economic fallacy." 👀
A lighter tidbit: The White House posted a message to trading partners. "DO NOT RETALIATE AND YOU WILL BE REWARDED." X user @helen chimed in, "me giving my dog a bath." And The New York Times's Joe Bernstein compared it, "Me to my 4 year old after my 2 year old kicks him in the face." 😂
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