Trump’s 10% baseline tariffs take effect

WASHINGTON: After unleashing tariff war, US President Donald Trump on Saturday reinforced his sweeping global tariff policy, cautioning Americans about upcoming economic hardship while assuring ‘the outcome will be historic.’

“We have been the dumb and helpless ‘whipping post,’ but not any longer. We are bringing back jobs and businesses like never before,” President Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.

“This is an economic revolution, and we will win,” he said. “Hang tough, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic,’’ Trump assured his compatriots.

Trump’s announcement of tariffs on Wednesday sent shockwaves through global stock markets. Wall Street plunged on Friday, wiping $5 trillion in market value from S&P 500 companies by the close of trading on Friday — marking a record two-day loss. Oil and commodity prices also tumbled as investors rushed toward the relative safety of government bonds. This came after steep losses in Asian and European markets.

The initial 10 per cent “baseline” tariff took effect at U.S. seaports, airports and customs warehouses at 12:01 a.m. ET (0401 GMT), ushering in Trump’s full rejection of the post-World War Two system of mutually agreed tariff rates.

“China has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close. They, and many other nations, have treated us unsustainably badly. We have been the dumb and helpless ‘whipping post,’ but not any longer,” Trump said, adding that his administration was reversing years of economic decline.

Come April 9, around 60 trading partners — including the European Union, Japan and China — are set to face even higher rates tailored to each economy.

Already, Trump’s sharp 34-percent tariff on Chinese goods, set to kick in next week, triggered Beijing’s announcement of its own 34-percent tariff on US products from April 10.

Beijing also said it would sue the United States at the World Trade Organization (WTO) and restrict the export of rare earth elements used in high-end medical and electronics technology.

Trump’s move to place stiff new tariffs on imports from nearly all US trading partners marks an all-in bet by the Republican that his once-fringe economic vision will pay off for Americans.

It was the realisation of his four decades of advocacy for a protectionist foreign policy and the belief that free trade was forcing the United States into decline as its economy shifted from manufacturing to services.

The tariff announcement was the latest and perhaps boldest manifestation of Trump’s second-term freedom to lead with his instincts after feeling his first turn in the Oval Office was restrained by aides who did not share his worldview. How it shakes out will be a defining judgment on his presidency.The early reviews have been worrisome.

It’s now Republican lawmakers who are fretting about their party’s future while Democrats feel newly buoyant over what they see as Trump’s overreach.

Democratic activists planned to participate in rallies across the country Saturday in what was shaping up as the largest demonstrations since Trump returned to office in January. “The winds are changing,” said Rahna Epting, who leads MoveOn, one of many organising groups. Trump is unbowed.

He has promised that the taxes on imports will bring about a domestic manufacturing renaissance and help fund an extension of his 2017 tax cuts. He insisted on Thursday as the Dow Jones fell by 1,600 points that things were “going very well” and the economy would “boom,” then spent Friday at the golf course as the index plunged 2,200 more points.

In his first term, Trump’s tariff threats brought world leaders to his door to cut deals. This time, his actions so far have led to steep retaliation from China and promises from European allies to push back.

Even some Trump supporters are having their doubts.

Despite opposition from several quarters, still, much of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” coalition remains publicly supportive.

Doug Deason, a prominent Texas-based Republican donor, said he loves the president’s tariff plan, even if it causes some economic disruption.

As Trump struggles with the economy, Democrats are beginning to emerge from the cloud of doom that has consumed their party ever since their election drubbing in November.

They scored a decisive victory in Wisconsin’s high-profile state Supreme Court election on Tuesday, even after Elon Musk and his affiliated groups poured more than USD 20 million into the contest.

New Jersey Sen Cory Booker then breathed new life into the Democratic resistance by delivering a record 25-hour-long speech on the Senate floor that centred on a call for his party to find its resolve.

Booker told The Associated Press afterward that a significant political shift has begun even as his party tries to learn from its mistakes in the 2024 presidential election.

There is broad agreement among Democrats — and even some Republicans, privately at least — that what Trump has unleashed on the global economy could help accelerate the Democratic comeback.