The Consequences of High Tariffs on Global Trade

U.S. President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause on much of what he calls "reciprocal tariffs" barely a week after first imposing them — while also implementing a 10 per cent tariff across the board on most countries, and a whopping 145 per cent tariff on China.

Markets first soared at the news, then went back into freefall. Members of Trump's cabinet claimed this was the strategy all along. The chaos even brought the stability of U.S. government bonds into question.

Justin Wolfers, a professor of economics at the University of Michigan, unpacks what's really going on here, and why Trump's past dealings with Canada could provide some insight into how it will all shake out.

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