White House roils markets with giant tariff revisions
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Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
The White House continues to roll out sweeping tariff announcements with little detail, leaving investors scrambling for information.
- Then, often days later, key clarifications or exemptions follow.
Why it matters: Even countries with direct involvement in the trade deals seem caught off guard by White House statements.
What they're saying: "Washington is just randomly shooting, and they are shooting some like-minded countries from behind," Taro Kono, a member of Japan's House of Representatives, said in a briefing, per the New York Times.
- Japan thought it received a 15% tariff rate on all goods.
- But the European Union tariff agreement made it appear levies on certain goods from Japan would be stacked.
- Japanese officials said the White House will correct the order, though it is unclear when that will happen.
Driving the news: There was confusion last week after reports that gold bars from Switzerland would face tariffs, pushing gold prices to hit a record high.
- On Friday afternoon, the White House stepped in to clarify: Expect an order that makes the situation clear later.
Zoom in: Henrietta Treyz, the director of economic policy research at Veda Partners, tells Axios that this "mass confusion" stands out in several specific events that have "rocked markets" in the last month alone.
- Transshipped goods — or items that pass through multiple countries — were originally tariffed at 40%, then stacked with a 20% tariff.
- Copper had its biggest one-day drop after President Trump announced exemptions on important forms of the metal from 50% tariffs.
- Non-U.S. chips were set to face a 100% tariff, but that will not apply to companies that invest in the U.S. or commit to that (enter Apple's $100 billion investment).
How it works: This is the pattern in all the instances just laid out.
- The White House issues a broad announcement on tariffs, without specifics and very rarely with details in writing.
- Investors, executives and policymakers scramble to clarify the impact on their sector. Panic ensues, and investors move money around.
- The White House clarifies the announcement. Market reactions ease.
Be smart: Two pivotal, ongoing court cases could restrict Trump's ability to use emergency powers to issue tariffs, which could make country-specific tariffs less sticky, while making sector-specific tariffs a bigger concern.
- Treyz expects a decision on these cases in the next one or two weeks, and anticipates a market selloff off the back of the result.
The bottom line: The confusion and subsequent revisions point to the fact that on tariffs "this is not one and done," Treyz says.
- Expect to be chasing clarity on tariff policy for a while longer.
