Donald Trump Backs Down On His Trade War Against The World

The ongoing turmoil in financial markets from the day the president declared “Liberation Day” finally generated enough pressure for at least a temporary pause.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump backed down from his trade war against the rest of the world Wednesday, at least temporarily, after his April 2 “Liberation Day” announcement tanked financial markets across the globe.

Trump announced on his social media platform that he is reducing tariffs on all countries to 10% for 90 days, rather than the higher rates he had misleadingly described as “reciprocal” tariffs last week. However, he said, China’s exports to the U.S. would now see a 125% tariff.

The stock market rallied at the news, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 6% on the day shortly after 2 p.m. Eastern time. It remains 2,000 points below its standing on “Liberation Day,” when Trump announced his massive tariff plan last week.

Trump’s cave came with relatively little warning and mere hours after he, his press secretary and other members of his administration had insisted there would be no pause and no negotiation on tariffs many conservatives had come to tout as a necessary burst of short-term pain to bring manufacturing back to America.

While providing short-term relief to the markets, the decision to back down has provided little guidance to America’s financial and political future. The stated goals of Trump’s tariff strategy ― a revival of manufacturing, a supposed burst of federal government revenue and an effort to reach new deals ― remain contradictory, with few economists willing to endorse his strategies.