Trump Announces 90-Day Pause On Tariffs: See What This Means In RI

RHODE ISLAND — President Donald Trump on Wednesday abruptly backed down on his tariffs on most nations, announcing a 90-day pause for all trading partners except for China, for which he raised the rate to 125 percent.

Global markets surged on the development, but the precise details of Trump's plans to ease tariffs on non-China trade partners were not immediately clear. It was seemingly an attempt to narrow what had been an unprecedented trade war between the U.S. and most of the world to one between the U.S. and China.

Patch has reached out to lawmakers in Rhode Island and will update this story when we hear back.

Trump announced the sweeping new tariffs last week, including a 10 percent tax on imports from all countries and higher tariff rates on dozens more.

The announcement prompted financial turmoil, with business executives warning of a potential recession and big declines in the stock market.

The Trump administration's about-face on tariffs came after a strong reaction across the global economy.

The tariffs kicked in shortly after midnight, including 104% on products from China, 20% on the European Union, 24% on Japan and 25% on South Korea.

When a downturn appears on the horizon, investors typically crowd into U.S. Treasury notes as a safe haven, viewing the federal government as a source of stability. Not this time. Government bond prices are down, pushing up the interest rate on the 10-year U.S. Treasury note to 4.45% in a sign that the world is increasingly leery of Trump's moves.

“The market is highly nervous about foreign investors stepping away from the US Treasury debt, which is sending yields sharply higher,” said Gennadiy Goldberg, head of U.S. rates strategy at TD Securities said earlier Wednesday. “Markets more broadly, not just the Treasury market, are looking for signs that a trade de-escalation is coming. Absent any de-escalation, it’s going to be difficult for markets to stabilize.”

The Republican president was publicly defiant as the stock market recovered slightly, then sold off and then bounce back in morning trading. The S&P 500 stock index has fallen more than 18% since Feb. 18 as Trump's tariff plans crystallized.

Business leaders warned of a likely recession.

JPMorgan Chase CEO and Chairman Jamie Dimon said there would “probably” be a recession, although he also deferred to his economists.“I do think fixing these tariff issues and trade issues would be a good thing to do,” he said in an interview with Fox Business Network's “Mornings with Maria.”

On CNBC, Delta Air Lines CEO Ed Bastian said the administration was being less strategic than it was during Trump's first term. His company had in January projected it would have its best financial year in history, only to scrap its expectations for 2025 due to the economic uncertainty.
“Trying to do it all at the same time has created chaos in terms of being able to make plans,” he said, noting that demand for air travel has weakened.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has previously said it could take months to strike deals with countries on tariff rates, and the administration had not been clear on whether the baseline 10% tariffs imposed on most countries would stay in place. But in an appearance on “Mornings with Maria,” Bessent said the economy would “be back to firing on all cylinders” at a point in the “not too distant future.”

He said there has been an "overwhelming" response by “the countries who want to come and sit at the table rather than escalate.” Bessent mentioned Japan, South Korea, and India. "I will note that they are all around China. We have Vietnam coming today,” he said.

Also read:

• See Which RI Grad Schools Are Ranked Among Best In U.S.
• REAL ID Deadline For RI Residents Now Less Than 1 Month Away
• RI AG Co-Leads Group Suing Trump Administration To Protect Funding For Libraries, More
• The Trump Tariff Effect In RI: What Products Will Cost More?

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Have a news tip? Email jimmy.bentley@patch.com.