U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during an executive order signing in the Oval Office at the White House on Feb. 11, 2025, in Washington, D.C.  (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Suddenly veering from his declaration a week ago, President Donald Trump on Wednesday paused his sweeping “liberation day” tariffs for 90 days on countries he’s said are willing to negotiate new trade deals.

Stocks surged upon his announcement after days of wrecked markets erased trillions of dollars from investor portfolios. The Nasdaq index saw the biggest single-day hike in five years as of Wednesday afternoon, according to financial media.

The pause will not extend to China, which he announced will see a further hike to 125% on imports to the U.S. “effective immediately,” he said.

“At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realize that the days of ripping off the U.S.A., and other Countries, is no longer sustainable or acceptable,” Trump posted on Truth Social just after 1 p.m. Eastern.

The president said more than 75 countries have reached out to negotiate, and that because “these Countries have not, at my strong suggestion, retaliated in any way, shape, or form against the United States” he is dropping their tariff rates to a universal 10%.

Several rounds of tariffs the president enacted in March will remain in place, including 25% import taxes on foreign steel, aluminum and cars — charges which sparked the European Union to approve retaliatory tariffs Wednesday.

Canada and Mexico, which both face up to 25% tariffs on a sizable chunk of products, will continue to see the levies but will not face an additional 10% stacked on top.

Trump’s 25% tax on imports from any country that buys oil from Venezuela also remains unchanged.

Americans ‘yippy’

The president told the press outside the White House Wednesday afternoon that he saw people getting “queasy” and “yippy” about the market turmoil.

“You have to have flexibility,” Trump said about his decision to pause the levies.

The tariffs, which the administration maintains are “reciprocal,” though under a formula disputed by economists, went into effect just after midnight Wednesday.

When asked by reporters if he’ll consider exempting any large companies that lost big in the market crash from paying the baseline 10% import tax, Trump said he’ll rely on his “instinct” to make the decision.

The announcement came just hours after the president posted on social media “BE COOL!” and “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!! DJT.”

Trump’s sudden pause also came just after U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer defended the steep tariffs to nervous lawmakers for the second day in a row.

Administration officials quickly claimed the sudden pause was part of Trump’s strategy all along — despite several saying over the last few days that the tariffs were here to stay and that Americans needed to have patience as the market crashed. More than half of Americans are invested in the stock market.

White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller characterized Trump’s about-face on tariffs as “the greatest economic master strategy from an American President in history,” in a post on X Wednesday afternoon.

A rollercoaster few days

Trump’s tariff plan sent shock waves through the economy after he unveiled import taxes on trading partners and allies, including 46% for Vietnam, a major tech exporter to the U.S.

The administration calculated the steep tariff rates based on each country’s trade deficit with the U.S.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters outside the White House Wednesday that the tariffs were “a successful negotiating strategy.”

“As I told everyone a week ago in this very spot: Do not retaliate, and you will be rewarded,” Bessent said.

The administration met with Vietnamese officials Wednesday, according to Bessent, and meetings with Japan, South Korea and India are expected shortly, though he didn’t provide details.

When asked by reporters if Trump’s tariff policy was mainly now focused on China, Bessent said “it’s about bad actors” but added that China “is the biggest source of the U.S. trade problems.”

The trade war — a term Bessent rejected — between the U.S. and China expanded rapidly overnight Wednesday when Chinese officials raised levies on U.S. goods to 84%.

“The US’s practice of escalating tariffs on China is a mistake on top of a mistake, which seriously infringes on China’s legitimate rights and interests and seriously damages the rules-based multilateral trading system,” according to a translation of a statement Wednesday from the country’s State Council Tariff Commission.

Pressure from lawmakers

A Trump campaign account posted on X a screenshot of the president’s morning message urging people to buy stocks and asked “Did the Panicans listen to @POTUS’s advice this morning?”

“Panicans” is a term Trump used recently to mock lawmakers who openly criticized losses to retirement funds and questioned how the tariffs would affect small businesses in their districts.

Republican Sens. Thom Tillis of North Carolina and James Lankford of Oklahoma grilled Greer Tuesday during a hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance.

“Whose throat do I get to choke if this proves wrong?” Tillis asked.

Greer faced questions Wednesday morning from the House Committee on Ways and Means, where Chair Jason Smith of Missouri cheered on Trump’s choice to unleash tariffs on almost every country at once.

Rep. Richard Neal, the panel’s top Democrat, told Greer that his office has been “inundated” with calls from constituents worried about their 401k funds.

“They don’t know what to expect, trillions of dollars of market value being lost even as we meet,” the Massachusetts Democrat said at the morning hearing before Trump called off the tariffs.   

Democratic Sen. Adam Schiff said Wednesday that he’s asking the White House if any insider trading occurred while Trump was “creating giant market fluctuations with his on-again, off-again tariffs.”

“Who in the administration knew about Trump’s latest tariff flip flop ahead of time? Did anyone buy or sell  stocks, and profit at the public’s expense?” Schiff wrote on X.

Democratic Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington and Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa introduced a bipartisan bill to claw back Congressional power over trade decisions from the president, who currently has near-unilateral authority.

GOP Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska introduced companion legislation in the House.

While Trump imposed some of his tariffs — including those on foreign steel and aluminum — under a national security provision, he levied the charges on Canadian and Mexican imports as well as his recent worldwide tariffs by declaring a national emergency. 

President Donald Trump is displayed on a television screen as traders work on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange on April 7, 2025, in New York City.  (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON — Global markets plummeted Monday for the third consecutive trading day since President Donald Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs — and the administration gave mixed signals on meeting other nations at the negotiating table.

U.S. stocks reacted positively to a short-lived, incorrect report amplified on social media that Trump may pause the tariffs for 90 days, but the market plunged quickly when the White House dismissed the claim as “FAKE NEWS.”

Any upward progress was erased upon Trump’s announcement that he planned to further punish China starting Wednesday.

At about 11:15 a.m. Eastern Trump threatened to raise tariffs on China a further 50% if the country does not back down on its retaliatory 34% tax on U.S. imports by Tuesday. If left unresolved, the latest U.S.-China trade war will hit American farmers, particularly soybean producers.

Writing on his platform Truth Social, Trump said “Additionally, all talks with China concerning their requested meetings with us will be terminated! Negotiations with other countries, which have also requested meetings, will begin taking place immediately.”

The administration maintains more than 50 countries have reached out to negotiate.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote on X that Trump has tasked him to negotiate with Japan, which could face a 24% levy beginning Thursday.

“Japan remains among America’s closest allies, and I look forward to our upcoming productive engagement regarding tariffs, non-tariff trade barriers, currency issues, and government subsidies. I appreciate the Japanese government’s outreach and measured approach to this process,” Bessent wrote on the social media platform.

“China has chosen to isolate itself by retaliating and doubling down on previous negative behavior,” Bessent added.

European Union’s stance

Meanwhile, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said she has offered the U.S. zero-for-zero tariffs on industrial goods.

“But we are also prepared to respond through countermeasures and defend our interests,” von der Leyen said Monday at a press conference.

Trump slapped a 20% tax on goods from the EU, set to take effect Thursday, on top of 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum that began in mid-March. A 25% tariff on all foreign cars imported to the U.S. also launched Thursday.

The EU is poised to impose retaliatory duties on American products in response to the import taxes. The bloc of 27 nations is scheduled to vote Wednesday on a list of U.S. goods to be taxed at its borders.

When asked by reporters in the Oval Office Monday if the EU offer was enough to scale back the tariffs, Trump said “No, it’s not.”

Journalists had gathered in the Oval Office for Trump’s meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who visited to discuss Trump’s new 17% tax on his country’s imports.

Netanyahu promised to “eliminate” his country’s trade deficit with the U.S.

“We intend to do it very quickly. We think it’s the right thing to do and we’re going to also eliminate trade barriers, a variety of trade barriers that have been put up unnecessarily. And I think Israel can serve as a model for many countries who ought to do the same,” Netanyahu said.

When asked by reporters if he intends to lower the tariffs on Israel, Trump said, “Maybe not.”

“We give Israel billions of dollars a year,” he added.

The meeting was streamed on C-SPAN.

‘Let’s take the deal’

Two Republican senators publicly urged Trump on social media to take the EU offer.

Sen. Mike Lee of Utah wrote, “Let’s take that deal! Much to gain.”

“Totally agree,” Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin replied. “At some point you have to take YES for an answer.”

Another Senate Republican, Ted Cruz of Texas, has publicly criticized Trump’s steep levies on almost every nation around the globe.

A bipartisan effort to claw back power from the president’s near-unilateral authority to impose tariffs might not get far, despite the economic uncertainty unleashed since Trump unveiled his “Liberation Day” plan.

Legislation co-sponsored by Democrat Maria Cantwell of Washington and Republican Chuck Grassley of Iowa would require the president to notify lawmakers prior to new tariffs from the White House and limit the levies to a 60-day window unless Congress approves an extension.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune of South Dakota seemed to shut down the idea Monday, according to reporters on Capitol Hill.

“I don’t think that has a future. The president has indicated he will veto it. I don’t see how they get it to the floor on the House,” Thune told Politico.

A companion bill in the House is sponsored by Republican Rep. Don Bacon of Nebraska.

Chances of House Speaker Mike Johnson bringing the bill to the floor are likely slim, as the Louisiana Republican supported Trump’s tariff unveiling in person last week.