Washington [US], April 2: Today, April 2, US President Donald Trump will officially announce a comprehensive tax plan on all trading partners accused of unfair treatment of the US.
Market panic
Reuters reported yesterday that most Asian and European stock markets recovered slightly from the sharp declines at the beginning of the week (March 31). However, confusion and uncertainty remained the common sentiment of investors before the White House announced new tariffs on April 2.
Yesterday, April 1, gold prices continued to set a new record for the fourth consecutive session as investors sought safe havens. Previously, the global market witnessed a sell-off on March 31 as concerns increased about the impact of tariffs that President Trump planned to launch. On March 31, representative US stock indexes such as the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite closed their worst trading quarter in 3 years, falling 4.6% and 10.4%, respectively.
On March 31, Mr. Trump said he would impose tariffs similar to those imposed by other countries on American goods, in an effort to reverse decades of unfair trade practices against Washington. He hinted that the US would be "very kind" but did not specify the specific tariffs or which countries would be affected.
Goldman Sachs forecasts that the White House could impose an average tax rate of 15%. The bank also raised its inflation forecast and lowered its forecast for US economic growth for the end of the year. The world's No. 1 economy has a 35% chance of recession next year, 15 percentage points higher than its previous forecast. International Monetary Fund (IMF) Director Kristalina Georgieva said that the US's efforts to raise taxes are causing anxiety and insecurity but are unlikely to cause a recession in the short term.
EU ready to respond
In response to the latest US tariffs, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen yesterday declared that the European Union (EU) "holds a lot of cards" and is ready to respond with strong measures if necessary, although she stressed that Europe 's goal is a negotiated solution.
Meanwhile, British Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds yesterday expected London to be exempted from the planned US tariffs on April 2 when the two sides agree on the framework of a new economic cooperation agreement. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the negotiations between the two sides were "progressing well".
The Guardian newspaper cited the results of a YouGov survey in 7 European countries (UK, Denmark, Germany, France, Spain, Sweden and Italy) showing that the majority supported retaliatory tariffs if the US "opened fire", although they admitted that they were likely to suffer damage from Washington's attack. A report by economists at Aston Business School of Aston University (UK) just released showed that if a trade war occurred with the US imposing global tariffs and other parties responding accordingly, the total damage to the global economy could reach $1,400 billion. Previously, the US imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico, China and the EU, causing these parties to retaliate.
Over the weekend, the economic and trade ministers of US allies Japan and South Korea met with their Chinese counterparts and agreed to "further promote trade based on international rules," according to NHK. After the meeting, some Chinese media reports suggested that the three countries had agreed to jointly counter the US tariffs. However, South Korea later said the reports were exaggerated, while Japan said there had been no such discussions. Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru said yesterday that he would not hesitate to go to Washington to directly appeal for Tokyo to be exempted from the US auto import tariffs that began on April 3.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper