Posted on 04/09/2025 5:31:30 PM PDT by karpov
President Trump says trade wars are easy to win. Investors think otherwise, and on Wednesday Mr. Trump decided maybe investors are right. After a flight from U.S. assets and a rout in the bond market, Mr. Trump announced a pause for 90 days on the worst of his “liberation” tariffs on most countries, China excepted.
Markets celebrated with a stock-market rally on hope that perhaps Mr. Trump isn’t entirely oblivious to the damage he’s causing. The rout in dollar assets reversed, at least somewhat, and the rise in the benchmark 10-year Treasury yield eased. It would be hard to find better evidence that markets believe the biggest threat to the world economy is Mr. Trump’s tariffs.
The bond rout was scary, with the 10-year yield hitting 4.47% at one point Wednesday, capping the steepest three-day yield climb since 2001. This was accompanied by a decline in the dollar against a basket of currencies. The fire sale on Treasurys and the dollar sent a warning about a loss of confidence in Washington. Investors are demanding higher yields to hold even safe Treasurys, which is the opposite of what usually happens in financial panics.
The pause is a partial reprieve, but hardly an end to the tariff mayhem. For one thing the Administration can’t get its story straight. Mr. Trump’s pause came not long after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told bankers the economy is “in pretty good shape.” He dismissed the bond rout as normal trading. But then why the tariff pause?
Mr. Trump is also escalating his trade war with China, the world’s second largest economy. He started the latest row with a 34% tariff on top of tariffs already in place, and China responded Tuesday with the same.
(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...
I've been criticizing tariffs here and taking flak for it, but if they were having good effects Trump would not be pausing them for 90 days.
The Japs stuck it to Trump. The Japs are not our friends.
Anyone, especially the Journalist editorial board, who doesn’t trust Trump with these economic and finance decisions is kidding.
The Wall Street Journal is no friend, but you know that Comrade.
You have no clue. This is about squeezing China.
Trump did no “blink.’
He may have been surprised ats the good reaction from so many nations, but he did no “blink.”
Stating he needed 90 days to negotiate with the 75 nations and that he wanted to personally involved. That sounds like a good plan to me.
Disagree, Trump had this card to play all along, he hast left the CCP looking for their pants a a Chinese laundrymat!
The pause is tactical. 70 countries want a deal. Seems reasonable to to talk. China is a different story. If this goes on much longer a lot of their container ships will be tied to a pier in ports all over the world. Oh, sure. It will cause supply problems here in the US, but no more than the stupid COVID lockdowns. The CCP is in a tight spot. They have no safety net for their workers and companies can't declare bankruptcy. A few 10's of millions of workers get idled and the lid blows off.
Yeah, that’s the ticket. He blinked and outsmarted you.
WSJ editorial board is pitiful and stupid too. They know nothing about the art of the deal. You can’t explain strategy to a frog or a dog and expect them to understand.
Trump is not an ideologue. He will push tariffs so long as it’s working for him. Once he gathers enough chits on trade deals he will take them and go bigger. Which I believe is China.
Huh, America-last globalists at the WSJ don’t see eye to eye with an America-first President and run propaganda in an attempt to downplay his successes. Imagine that.
Trump is playing “Wall Street” like a piano.
He is masterful.
“Trump…left the CCP looking for their pants at a Chinese laundrymat!”
Sticking to his guns would have given him a much better position to make deals. He listened to people like Musk and he caved.
Its called good will. Do these folks not believe that counties not serious about making deals wont at some point be hit? Hes giving them a chance … right now.
70 countries (roughly) have surrendered. Do you shoot the prisoners?
No, he did not cave.There’s way more reason to believe, given the data that he got the positive outcome he was seeking earlier than he expected and adjusted course.
But feel free to make up lies and stories to comfort your TDS.
They only don't matter if trade imbalances and huge national debt and the national security implications of limited domestic manufacturing capabilities are of no concern. If any of those matter then playing a tit for tat game to return to a fair playing field, which is evidently Trump's strategy though none of you short-sighted fools can see this, is the right thing to do.
“The bond rout was scary, with the 10-year yield hitting 4.47% at one point Wednesday, capping the steepest three-day yield climb since 2001.”
Interest should be 3% + my personal basket of goods inflation rate.
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