U.S Tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China begin Saturday
The White House announced Friday that President Donald Trump will impose aggressive tariffs on major U.S. trading partners this weekend.
Trump will impose 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico and 10% on China, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a press release. The White House stated that the levies will be open for public inspection at some point on Saturday, but it gave few specifics about how they will be distributed.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 300 points because of the report.
The Nasdaq Composite index and the S&P 500 experienced losses. Earlier in the day, the main benchmarks were up significantly.
The White House denied a previous Reuters report that the tariffs would be postponed until March 1 and that there would be at least some exclusions rather than merely general measures affecting all products, there was no word on any possible exemptions to the tariffs. The U.S. does business with the three nations worth roughly $1.06 trillion yearly.
Trump wants to use the tariffs to change foreign policy, particularly immigration and drug trade issues, and as a negotiating chip.
Economists are concerned that the tariffs might cause inflation to spike again when it seems like price pressures are starting to ease.
Although a closely watched inflation figure by the Federal Reserve increased to 2.6 percent in December, the Commerce Department’s report on Friday seemed to have more encouraging details. Fed officials have stated, nevertheless, that they are keeping an eye on the effects of fiscal policy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
See More
Join 350 000+ traders receiving Free Trading Signals
Alerts
Rates
Calendar
Signals
Top Broker