Trump's global tariff shake-up: China hit by 34% rate
Donald Trump announced new tariffs on countries worldwide on Wednesday. At the top of the list he displayed was China, which will face 34% tariffs. "Gonna be a wild day in markets Thursday," commented David Ingles, Bloomberg's chief market journalist.
Donald Trump, on what he called Liberation Day, Wednesday, April 2, signed documents implementing new tariffs on countries around the world. A base rate of 10% will apply to all goods imported into the USA, while a 25% rate will apply to cars. These tariffs will take effect on April 5. Additionally, he presented a list of countries that will face "proportional" retaliatory tariffs, which will be implemented starting April 9.
Donald Trump imposes tariffs on China and other countries
- For nations that treat us badly, we will calculate the combined rate of all their tariffs, non monetary barriers and other forms of cheating - he announced. He added that since the United States is "very courteous," the tariffs announced by the USA will represent half of the calculated amount.
At the top of the list of countries Trump displayed is China. They are set to be subject to a 34% tariff. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is rumored to have confirmed that this amounts to a total tariff of 54% on China, when combined with earlier 20% tariffs. Jeffrey Kleintop, Chief Global Investment Strategist at investment firm Charles Schwab, assessed this as a "negative surprise."
David Ingles from Bloomberg pointed out that Trump's decision immediately caused the dollar-to-yuan exchange rate to fluctuate. "It's going to be a wild Thursday in the markets," assessed Ingles.
Trump's decision affected not only the yuan exchange rate but also the euro-to-dollar. Experts assess that the tariffs could have dire consequences for the USA. Prof. Phillips P. O'Brien, a professor of strategic studies at the University of St Andrews stated that the United States will be cut off from many global supply chains.
