President Donald Trump threatened with additional prices on China on Monday, which has made new concerns about the fact that his desire to rebalance the world economy could lead to a trade war.
The threat of Trump, which he delivered on social networks, came after China said that she would retaliate against the American rates announced last week.
“If China does not withdraw its 34% increase above its trade abuses already long-term by tomorrow, on April 8, 2025, the United States will impose additional prices on China by 50%, from April 9,” he wrote on Truth Social. “In addition, all discussions with China concerning their meetings requested with us will be dismissed!
Trump remained provocative as the stock market continued to dive and fears of a recession.
“Be strong, courageous and patient, and the greatness will be the result!” He wrote.
The industrial average of Dow Jones dropped by 1,200 points while trading began on Monday morning, and the S&P 500 was on the right track to enter a lower market, which means falling by 20% compared to a recent summit. Even some Trump’s allies have alarms on economic damage, and financial forecasts suggest more pain on the horizon for American companies, consumers and investors.
The republican president insisted that his prices are necessary to rebalance world trade and rebuild national manufacturing. He accused other countries of “enjoying the good old USA!” on international trade and said that “our” past leaders “are to blame for having allowed this.” He distinguished China as “the greatest attacker of all” and criticized Beijing for having increased his own rates in retaliation.
Trump also called on the federal reserve to reduce interest rates. Friday, the president of the federal reserve, Jerome Powell, warned that the prices could increase inflation, and he declared: “There is a lot of expectations and to see taking place, including by us”, before any decision is made.
Investors expect the American central bank to reduces its reference interest rates at least four times by the end of this year, according to Fedwatch of the CME group, a sign that concerned inflation will be overshadowed by fears of layoffs and a narrowing economy.
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Trump spent the weekend in Florida, arriving Thursday evening to attend a tournament funded by Arabia in his Miami golf course. He stayed in Mar-A-Lago, his private club in Palm Beach, and a golf course in two of its nearby properties.
On Sunday, he published a video of himself with a trip, and he told journalists on the Air Force one that evening that he had won a club championship.
“It’s good to win,” said Trump. “You heard that I won, right?”
He also declared that he would not back up his prices despite the turmoil in the world markets.
“Sometimes you have to take medication to repair something,” said Trump.
Goldman Sachs has published new forecasts indicating that a recession has become more likely even if Trump is falling from his prices. The financial firm said that economic growth would slow down considerably “as a result of a net tightening of financial conditions, boycotts of foreign consumers and a continuous increase in political uncertainty which is likely to repress capital expenses more than what we had supposed before”.
The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said that the European Union would focus on trade with other countries in addition to the United States, saying that there were “important opportunities” elsewhere.
Trump said he spoke with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba to start trade negotiations. He complained about the social truth “they treated the United States very badly on trade” and “they do not take our cars, but we take millions of their”.
Ishiba told Trump that he was “strongly concerned” that prices discouraged Japan investments, which has been the world’s largest investor in the United States in the past five years. He described the situation as a “national crisis” and said that his government would negotiate with Washington to urge Trump to reconsider prices.
The Commercial Advisor of the White House, Peter Navarro, suggested that countries should do much more than simply reducing their own rate rates to conclude agreements, claiming that they should make structural changes to their tax and regulatory codes.
“Let’s take Vietnam,” he said on CNBC. “When they come to see us and tell us:” We will go to zero prices “, that means nothing for us because it is the cheat not of the price that counts.”
On Monday, the president is expected to welcome the Los Angeles Dodgers to the White House to celebrate their World Series victory. He also met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and they should hold a joint press conference in the afternoon.
Trump tried from a united front after the chaotic intestine struggles of his first mandate. However, economic turbulence has exposed certain fractures within its disparate coalition of supporters.
Bill Ackman, a healing fund manager, was unleashed to the Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on Sunday as “indifferent to the stock market and the economy that crashes”. He said that Cantor Fitzgerald, the financial company led by Lutnick before joining the Trump administration, took advantage of profit due to bond investments.
Ackman apologized for his criticism on Monday, but reiterated his concerns about Trump’s prices.
“I am just frustrated to see what I think is a major political error occurs after our country and the president has made enormous economic progress which is now at risk due to the prices,” he wrote on X.
The top economic advisor of the White House, Kevin Hassett, told Fox News Channel that Jckman should “reduce rhetoric a little.”
He insisted that other countries, not the United States, “will bring the weight of prices”.
Billionaire Elon Musk, one of Trump’s main advisers on the revision of the federal government, expressed his skepticism as for the prices during the weekend. Musk said prices would increase costs for Tesla, its electric car manufacturer.
“I hope it is agreed that Europe and the United States should ideally evolve in my opinion towards a zero tariff situation, effectively creating a free trade area between Europe and North America,” Musk said during a video with Italian politicians.
He added: “It was certainly my advice to the president.”
Navarro later told Fox News that Musk “does not understand” the situation.
“He sells cars,” said Navarro. “That’s what he does.” He added that “he simply protects his own interests as any businessman would.”
___ The writer Associated Press Mari Yamaguchi contributed to Tokyo.
