Trump doubles down, vows to make Chinese imports even more expensive for Americans

World War Fee President Donald Trump has threatened to increase tariffs on Chinese goods by a further 50 percent this week, meaning imports from the Middle Kingdom into America would have a 104 percent levy. And buyers are expected to pick up the extra cost.

Reacting to China's Friday decision to match 34 percent tariffs set by the US President - plus a ban on the export of certain rare earth minerals - on Monday morning Trump took to his state-slash-social-media site to announce additional tariffs on the Middle Kingdom unless Beijing backed down - using "the most beautiful word in the dictionary" (tariffs) six times in a single sentence.

Essentially, if China doesn't drop its 34 percent import tax on American goods, matching what America put on China, the United States will up its recent tariff increase on Chinese products to 104 percent on April 9.

"China issued Retaliatory Tariffs of 34 percent, on top of their already record setting Tariffs, Non-Monetary Tariffs, Illegal Subsidization of companies, and massive long term Currency Manipulation, despite my warning that any country that Retaliates against the US by issuing additional Tariffs, above and beyond their already existing long term Tariff abuse of our Nation, will be immediately met with new and substantially higher Tariffs, over and above those initially set," Trump said on Truth Social.

"Therefore, if China does not withdraw its 34 percent increase above their already long term trading abuses by tomorrow, April 8, 2025, the United States will impose ADDITIONAL Tariffs on China of 50 percent, effective April 9."

China was already under a 20 percent tariff rate and during last week's so-called Liberation Day announcement at the White House, an additional 34 percent tariff was added to anyone paying for Chinese goods. By adding another 50 percent to that the cost of imports is effectively doubling, and companies bringing into components and goods from China have already said they'll have no choice but to pass that on to end buyers.

In addition, the deal-maker-in-chief said the US would pull out of any trade talks until China kowtows to his demands. We're not expecting Beijing to back down.

Speaking on Air Force One after a weekend spent golfing and fundraising, Trump complained the US had a huge trade deficit with China. He seems surprised that a rich super-power like America would buy more stuff from a nation that has a significantly lower GDP-per-capita than that nation buys from America. Then again, he was also seemingly surprised that Canada, a resource-rich ally with the population of one US state, would sell more into the US than it buys from the US.

Meanwhile, the financial markets slumped globally as investors realized very few people are going to win from this tariff war. Not in America where prices will go up, or profits will be lowered and layoffs will follow, and retirements are being postponed, and not in China where exports are likely to drop and revenues fall.

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After two days of massive selloffs on US exchanges, the markets are still looking battered this morning. There was a brief rally when randoms with paid-for blue ticks on Twitter said the tariffs were going to be paused for 90 days, though the White House director of communications called this out as fake news. So far, indexes at least are stabilizing.

In the UK, the FTSE dropped 5 percent on Monday, before recovering slightly. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index is down 13 percent and Shanghai was down 7 percent. President Trump shows no sign of backing down.

"Oil prices are down, interest rates are down (the slow moving Fed should cut rates!), food prices are down, there is NO INFLATION, and the long time abused USA is bringing in Billions of Dollars a week from the abusing countries on Tariffs that are already in place," he thundered on state media.

"This is despite the fact that the biggest abuser of them all, China, whose markets are crashing, just raised its Tariffs by 34%, on top of its long term ridiculously high Tariffs (Plus!), not acknowledging my warning for abusing countries not to retaliate. They’ve made enough, for decades, taking advantage of the Good OL’ USA! Our past “leaders” are to blame for allowing this, and so much else, to happen to our Country. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!" ®