Tariffs

NPR - Americans have been unhappy about the cost of groceries, and a 10% tariff won’t help with that, NPR’s Scott Horsley says. Philip Marfuggi, who runs Ambriola, a big cheese importer, tells Horsley some companies may shift to smaller packages to mask the cost of import tax. For now, investors have found relief with the pause on at least some of the president’s tariffs. Horsley says it has been a rocky seven days for investors, and the roadmap could shift again with another strike of Trump’s Sharpie pen.

1440- China announced new retaliatory tariffs of 84% against US imports early Wednesday in response to the Trump administration’s 104% tariff on Chinese imports. The escalation came as Trump announced a 90-day pause on most tariffs over 10%—excluding China—later in the day, sparking markets to historic rallies. Trump also increased China’s tariffs to 125%.

 The tariff pause came amid warnings from economists—including JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon—that the broad tariff program would lead to a recession (tariffs 101). Since last week’s announcement of increased tariffs on more than 75 nations, the S&P 500 had entered bear market territory, having shed nearly 20% off its recent high, while all US-listed stocks dropped $7.7T in value.