People the world over have witnessed the effects of Trump’s governing by “whim” or “instinct” this week. He’s definitely succeeded in giving instinct a bad name.
As the dust settles a bit on his one-man global trade war, it turns out that he may not be mad at everybody — it’s China that’s the main focus of his wrath.
So now it seems we are to skip right to the championship round of the world cup of trade wars. It’s US v. China.
While I’m unsure which country will come out on top, I’m pretty sure who will lose: Everybody.
These crazy tariffs have disrupted the markets, destabilized the economy, disrupted supply lines, and unsettled almost everything else. Prices on many goods are certain to rise and whatever “deals” are eventually arrived at to mollify Trump’s ego, we all know they too could be upended at any point by his next whim.
Welcome to the Age of Whimsical Uncertainty.
HEADLINES:
This Is Why Dictatorships Fail (Atlantic)
U.S. Market Tumbles; Trump Says China Tariff Is at Least 145% (NYT)
Trump's abrupt reversal Wednesday on the aggressive global tariffs he announced a week ago left critics shaking their heads. "Trump has created a situation where the whole world is against us, and everyone is furious at America," this prominent Democrat said. [HuffPost]
Trump Isn’t the Only One with Leverage in the Trade War. What Moves Beijing Has Left. (Barron’s)
Trump doesn’t rule out extending 90-day tariff pause (CNBC)
EU suspends retaliatory 25% tariffs on US goods after Trump U-turn (Guardian)
Trump's tariff pause leaves CEOs puzzled about what happens in 90 days (Reuters)
U.S. and China Headed for ‘Monumental’ Split, Putting World Economy on Edge (NYT)
US-China rivalry over Panama Canal sparks tensions, leaving Panama caught in war of words (CNN)
Chinese companies that sell products on Amazon are preparing to increase prices for the United States or quit that market due to the duty hikes, sellers and the head of China's largest e-commerce association said. (Reuters)
A Treasury market meltdown postmortem (Financial Times)
Social Security abandons DOGE-led phone service cuts amid chaos, backlash (WP)
Universities in Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union thought giving in to government demands would save their independence (The Conversation)
House adopts budget blueprint for Trump's agenda after GOP leaders sway holdouts (NBC)
MAHA Turns on RFK Jr. Over Measles Vaccine Stance (WSJ)
Trump Threatens Climate Policies in the States (NYT)
Trump: Israel would be ‘leader’ of Iran strike if Tehran doesn’t give up nuclear weapons program (AP)
The plans to put data centres in orbit and on the Moon (BBC)
Scientists are X-raying the Amazon to discover a lost human history. (WP)
Mira Murati’s AI startup gains prominent ex-OpenAI advisers (TechCrunch)
Elon Musk’s xAI powering its facility in Memphis with ‘illegal’ generators (Guardian)
How AGI Made the Future Unthinkable (New York)
A nonprofit is using AI agents to raise money for charity (TechCrunch)
Trump Boasts About Strong-Arming Trump Into Pausing Tariffs (The Onion)
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