Markets, consumers, and politicians are bracing for the fallout as the second round of President Trump’s tariffs goes into effect today.
About 60 countries are facing higher charges on their imports.
China will pay the highest price, with a 104% surcharge on its goods, and that’s sparking concerns of a trade war.
China says it will take “resolute” and forceful measures to counter the Trump administration’s latest round of tariffs, announcing today that it’s imposing an 84 percent tariff on U.S. goods.
The White House said the sweeping tariffs are designed to open negotiations with America’s trading partners.
“The president’s message has been simple and consistent from the beginning to countries around the world – bring us your best offers and he will listen,” said White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.
Stocks across Asia and Europe saw significant losses as the new round took effect. Wall Street continues to also take a hit, edging closer to bear market territory.
“That doesn’t occur every day and is a sign of distress in the market,” noted Seth Sutel, with the Associated Press.
READ: Trump Urges Americans Not to Panic as Tariffs Rattle Markets
The nation’s top trade representative faced the Senate’s Finance Committee on Tuesday, where lawmakers from both parties expressed concern over the impact on Americans’ 401(k) retirement plans.
“You said the president’s strategy is already bearing fruit. I can tell you for a lot of Oregonians who have 401(k)s that are being drained out that’s pretty rotten stuff,” said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) during Tuesday’s hearing.
Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, questioned who in the administration would be held accountable if the tariffs fail and Americans suffer.
“If you own this decision, then I’ll look to you to figure out if we’re gonna be successful,” said Tillis. “If you don’t own the decision, I’m just trying to figure out whose throat I get to choke if it’s wrong.”
Despite concerns, President Trump maintains that the tariffs are achieving results, with nearly 70 countries lined up for negotiations.
“I call them tailored deals not off the rack, these are tailored, highly tailored deals,” Trump said. “Right now Japan is flying here to make a deal. South Korea is flying here to make it deal and others are flying here.”
In the meantime, as the trade war intensifies, Americans can expect to pay more for groceries, clothing, and household items in the near future.
“We’re not talking about months away or even quarters away, and some goods, automobiles could be one of those, you could be talking about weeks away,” Dr. Jared Pincin of Cedarville University told CBN’s Faith Nation.
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Shoppers are already starting to stockpile goods.
“Consumers are uncertain, just like the business environment is like right now,” Pincin added. “So they are uncertain about where prices are gonna move and so they’d rather buy goods and services at the prices that they can see now rather than the unknown prices that could happen in the future.”
As trade tensions rise, the true impact of these tariffs will become clearer in the coming weeks.
