High Stakes and Lack of Details Add to Jitters About Trump Tariffs

DealBook|High Stakes and Lack of Details Add to Trade War Jitters

What’s behind door No. 1?

President Trump likes a big splash, and he’s not holding back for Wednesday’s introduction of reciprocal tariffs on America’s trading partners: Expect a major announcement in the Rose Garden.

Otherwise, detail is lacking. That prompted a major stock sell-off, with the S&P 500 experiencing its worst one-month loss since 2022 as economists warn of a potential trade war that reignites inflation and dents global growth. (The futures market points to another rough open for the benchmark index on Tuesday.)

“If it is necessary, we have a strong plan to retaliate, and we will use it,” Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, warned on Tuesday.

The White House appears unmoved by such threats. That’s even as consumer sentiment and business confidence continue to look shaky. A CBS News poll released on Monday showed that many Americans were already feeling some tariff fatigue and would prefer the president direct his efforts at fighting inflation.

White House aides have reportedly drafted a proposal to impose tariffs of roughly 20 percent on a wide range of U.S. imports, The Washington Post reports.

The president and his team have doubled down on their tariff messaging: Trump sees reciprocal tariffs — which he defines as “whatever they charge us, we charge them” — as a tool to bring jobs back to the United States and rebalance the country’s trade deficit. Meanwhile, he hasn’t refrained from introducing new ones: Last week’s announcement about levies on autos and car parts caught many in the industry off guard, setting off a rout in auto stocks.