PNN – US President Donald Trump’s imposition of tariffs on other countries’ imports of goods into the United States has shocked global markets and caused stocks to plummet in global financial markets within a short period of time since its official announcement.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network, Trump announced on Wednesday (April 2, 2025) local time at a ceremony in the White House Rose Garden that he would impose reciprocal tariffs to match duties that other countries have imposed on American goods.
During a ceremony in the Rose Garden of the White House, the US President set a base tariff of 10% for all imported goods and also announced the imposition of a 34% tariff on goods imported from China and 20% and 24% tariffs on goods imported from the European Union and Japan, respectively, and noted: This is the Declaration of Economic Independence of the United States.
After Trump announced the new tariffs, futures for the S&P 500, an index that tracks the stock prices of the 500 largest publicly traded companies in the United States, fell 3 percent, indicating that investors in the US stock market expect to face heavy losses when Wall Street opens on Thursday.
This is while the information received and the charts in Eastern countries, which entered Thursday earlier than any other country, indicate a downward trend in stock markets, and for example, the value of the Chinese yuan has also fallen to its lowest level in the last month.
In this regard, Nigel Green, CEO of the Dubai-based Dior Financial and Investment Advisory Group, told Reuters about the impact of the US President’s new tariffs on the global economy and trade: By doing this, Trump destroyed the world’s economic engine and, in fact, by imposing these tariffs, has caused many problems for global trade.
He continued by stating that the tariff, in simple terms, is a hidden tax, emphasizing: In essence, it is American consumers who will bear the greatest burden and pressure of this hidden tax.
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Greene pointed out that the implementation of Trump’s new tariffs will cause businesses to lose the ability to predict their business situation in the coming quarter, saying: So they will stop hiring and new investments and their plans.
Italy: Trump’s action was wrong
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who attended Trump’s inauguration and is considered one of his supporters in Europe, also called these actions wrong in response to Trump’s trade war against the world, saying that this American action could lead to the start of a trade war.
Former International Monetary Fund economist Ken Ragoff also told the BBC that Trump has dropped a nuclear bomb on the global trading system because under these conditions, the probability of the US economy entering a recession has reached 50%, and the consequences of this level of tariffs on imports to the US are staggering.
England: We will not remain silent and will consider all options for response
UK Trade and Commerce Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said in a statement: We always act in the interests of British businesses and consumers. That is why our focus in recent weeks has been on negotiating an economic agreement with the United States to strengthen fair and balanced trading relations.
Referring to Washington’s action to impose a 10% tariff on imports of goods from the UK, he added: No one wants a trade war, but if our national interests are threatened, we will not hesitate to take action. All options are on the table.
Switzerland: We will determine next steps to counter US tariffs
In response to Trump’s action, Swiss President Karin Keller Schütter wrote in X: The Swiss Federal Council has taken note of the US customs decisions and will quickly determine the next steps to counter the US tariffs.
Schutter continued by stating that the Swiss government’s actions in response to Donald Trump’s new tariffs will be taken in accordance with international law and free market treaties, emphasizing: These actions will be focused on protecting Switzerland’s long-term economic interests.
In a speech defending his tariff war, the US president said: From now on, foreign countries will be required to pay for the privilege of accessing the US market, which is the largest market in the world. All foreign presidents, prime ministers, kings, queens, ambassadors and other officials will soon be calling the US to request exemption from these tariffs.
Trump announced the imposition of a 25% tariff on all foreign-made cars imported into the country, saying that he had announced “reciprocal tariffs” on almost every country in the world.
The US President claimed: Today is one of the most important days in American history because it marks the declaration of our economic independence. We have reclaimed the destiny of the United States of America and returned it to its former glory.
Reactions to Trump’s action continue, and global markets are also affected by it, and the upward trend in gold prices in the global market has accelerated.