
This is the dubious way Trump appears to have calculated his ‘reciprocal’ tariffs
CNN
This is the dubious way Trump appears to have calculated his ‘reciprocal’ tariffs
President Donald Trump’s massive tariffs announced on dozens of nations Wednesday were pitched as “reciprocal,” matching what other countries charge the United States dollar for dollar, even taking into account non-tariff barriers like value-added taxes and other such measures. But the actual calculation the Trump administration seems to have used seems not to be reciprocal at all. Matching countries’ tariffs dollar for dollar is an incredibly difficult task, involving poring over each country’s tariff schedule and matching a complex array of products, each of which has a different charge for any variants. Instead, the Trump administration seems to have used quite a simple calculation: the country’s trade deficit divided by its exports to the United States times 1/2. That’s it. The calculation was first suggested by journalist James Surowiecki in a post on X and backed up by Wall Street analysts. For example, America’s trade deficit with China in 2024 was $295.4 billion, and the United States imported $439.9 billion worth of Chinese goods. That means China’s trade surplus with the United States was 67% of the value of its exports — a value the Trump administration labeled as “tariff charged to USA.”

President Donald Trump and his advisers said this was the plan all along: Scare the bejesus out of the world by announcing astronomically high tariffs, get countries to come to the negotiating table, and — with the exception of China — back away from the most punishing trade barriers as America works out new trade agreements around the globe.

If paying $1,000 for a new iPhone already sounded expensive, consumers should brace for even greater sticker shock later this year. President Donald Trump’s tariffs on foreign goods – specifically those sourced from China – are expected to heighten the prices of everyday tech products, from iPhones to laptops, cars and even smaller gadgets like headphones and computer mice.

The US stock market, fresh off its third-best day in modern history, is sinking back into reality: Although President Donald Trump paused most of his “reciprocal” tariffs, his other massive import taxes have already inflicted significant damage, and the economy won’t easily recover from the fallout.