BREAKING: Trump’s Tariff Offensive Spurs Huge Economic Wins

April 10, 2025 – In the past week, a flurry of pro-Trump developments has underscored President Donald Trump’s America First agenda on trade. From bold new tariffs aimed at protecting U.S. industries to a roaring stock market rebound, the President’s hardline stance is delivering results. Key policy moves – including steep tariffs on China and a strategic pause for allies – have prompted global trade partners to the negotiating table and even saw consumer prices fall for the first time in years. Below we break down the week’s major America First highlights, in a tone reflecting the optimism of Trump’s supporters, and backed by sources from the last seven days.

Bold Tariff Moves Target Unfair Trade Practices

President Trump doubled down on his signature trade policy this week, escalating tariffs on countries with unfair practices. Last week, he unveiled a “reciprocal tariff” strategy, vowing to match any country’s high tariffs on American goods with equal or greater tariffs on their imports​. The primary target was China – which had long levied steep duties on U.S. products – and Beijing quickly felt the impact.

• Tough on China: After China’s President Xi Jinping refused to withdraw newly announced retaliatory tariffs on American exports, Trump hit back immediately. As of Tuesday midnight (April 8), the U.S. imposed a 104% tariff on all Chinese goods​. This astonishing hike – more than doubling the cost of Chinese imports – was triggered by Xi’s retaliation and Trump’s refusal to back down. “Countries like China, who have chosen to retaliate… are making a mistake,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt declared, emphasizing that President Trump “has a spine of steel, and he will not break”. Indeed, Trump warned Beijing that if it persisted with counter-tariffs, even more pain would follow – an additional 50% levy was readied, bringing the potential total tariff to 125% on Chinese goods.
• Retaliation and Further Escalation: Beijing’s response came swiftly. By Wednesday, China’s Finance Ministry announced it would slap 84% tariffs on U.S. goods starting Thursday, up from the 34% it initially planned​. This was the latest shot in what has become an intense trade standoff. Yet Trump was unfazed. By Thursday morning, U.S. tariffs on China had surged to 145% on targeted products, as the administration followed through on its promise to answer any Chinese counter-move. American officials made clear that only China is being singled out for such extreme measures – allies and fair traders are being treated differently.

Trump’s rationale for these unprecedented tariffs is simple: level the playing field for American workers and industries that have long suffered under unequal trade deals. The U.S. free-trade era with China, begun after China joined the WTO in the early 2000s, has “devastated America’s working and middle class” by eliminating millions of jobs​. A 2018 study found the U.S. trade deficit with China from 2001 to 2017 cost 3.4 million American jobs across all 50 states​. Trump’s America First tariffs directly confront this imbalance. “I know what the hell I’m doing,” the President told Republican lawmakers on Tuesday, urging them to trust his strategy​. His aim, he says, is to stop foreign exploitation of U.S. markets and bring back manufacturing. By wielding tariffs as leverage, Trump is pressuring trading partners to end decades of one-sided deals that hurt U.S. factories and workers.

Notably, Trump tempered his global tariff policy to avoid punishing U.S. allies. In an olive branch to partners, he paused planned tariff hikes for 90 days on countries that have not retaliated against the U.S.​ The baseline 10% tariff on all imports remains in place as a safeguard​, but friendly nations won’t face further increases during this grace period. This move, announced mid-week, reinforced the central message: nations that cooperate with America will be rewarded, while those engaging in trade wars will face U.S. resolve. Trump described the policy as a “global reciprocal tariff scheme” – now temporarily on hold for most countries – designed to push everyone towards fair deals​. The focus of U.S. trade pressure is squarely on China, the one major economy openly challenging Trump’s tariffs.

Market Rebound Signals Confidence in Trump’s Strategy

Early in the week, Wall Street trembled amid talk of an escalating trade war. Global investors fretted that Trump’s aggressive tariff strategy might spark a financial crisis or a foreign investor exodus. U.S. bond yields spiked to levels not seen since 2008 as rumors swirled that China and others would dump U.S. Treasury bonds in protest​. Stocks tumbled for several days, with the Dow, S&P 500, and Nasdaq suffering steep losses on fears of a “sell America” wave. Critics and doomsayers gleefully predicted that Trump’s America First trade push would backfire, isolating the U.S. and tanking the market​.

But by mid-week, that narrative flipped dramatically. President Trump urged calm and confidently told the nation to “BE COOL!”, assuring on Truth Social that “Everything is going to work out well”​. On Wednesday morning he even flashed his business acumen, posting: “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY!!!”. He was right. Within hours, the markets validated Trump’s optimism. A blockbuster $39 billion U.S. Treasury auction drew overwhelming demand from global investors, quelling fears of any boycott​. The 10-year Treasury bonds sold at a yield of 4.435%, lower than expected – a clear sign that investors were eager to buy American debt even amid the trade tussle​. In fact, foreign buyers (so-called “indirect bidders”) scooped up 88% of the auction, far above normal levels​. This resounding vote of confidence “upend[ed] the narrative” of a global investor strike, proving that the world still trusts the U.S. economy under Trump’s leadership. As one senior bond trader put it, the result was a “vote of confidence and support” for America​ – a sharp rebuke to those who doubted Trump’s approach.

Wall Street responded with a historic rally. By Wednesday’s close, stocks had skyrocketed: the Dow Jones surged 5.9%, the S&P 500 leapt 7.3%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq roared ahead 8.9%. This dramatic rebound erased the previous week’s losses and then some, as investors reassessed the risk and liked what they saw. The catalyst was twofold: first, the remarkably strong Treasury auction that calmed nerves, and second, Trump’s announcement of a tariff pause for U.S. allies, which reassured markets that a global trade meltdown would be avoided. In essence, Trump’s steady handling of the situation – offering carrots to friends and sticks to adversaries – restored confidence and “Delivering a sharp rebuke to doomsayers.” Foreign-investor flight simply did not happen—as many predicted— instead of a crisis, America got a vote of confidence in its financial strength.

Trump’s economic team, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Vice President J.D. Vance, worked behind the scenes to ensure global partners understood the plan​. They signaled that the administration’s moves were “deliberate and focused” – aimed at ending decades of economic exploitation by nations like China, not throwing the world into chaos​. That reassurance paid off. Even before the formal tariff relief was announced, bond buyers were already rallying behind Trump’s trade push​. As Trump noted, “Virtually every country wants to negotiate” now​. The strong market rebound this week suggests that investors believe Trump is calling the shots and will steer the U.S. economy to growth despite the naysayers. Far from cowering, the world is buying into America – literally – as Trump demands fair trade.

Allies at the Table, Adversaries Feeling the Heat

Trump’s hard-nosed tactics are yielding diplomatic dividends. Allies and trading partners worldwide are coming to the negotiating table, heeding the message that it’s better to work with the United States than face tariffs. The European Union, initially miffed by Trump’s announcement of new steel and aluminum tariffs on them, quickly reversed course once Trump extended his olive branch pause. Brussels has now suspended its own planned retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods, opting instead to pursue a trade deal in the next 90 days​. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Thursday that the EU “took note” of Trump’s tariff pause (excluding only China) and decided “we want to give negotiations a chance.” In fact, the EU had authorized a package of counter-tariffs just hours earlier, but put them “on hold for 90 days” once President Trump showed willingness to exempt friends from his global tariff plan​. This climb-down by the EU – coming from a bloc traditionally wary of Trump – is a testament to his deal-making approach. Even von der Leyen, a longtime European leader, mirrored Trump’s stance by suspending the fight and signaling a readiness to talk​. While she maintained a firm tone that the EU’s “preparatory work on further countermeasures continues,” it’s clear that Europe prefers negotiation over escalation. Trump proudly noted that since he announced his reciprocal tariff strategy, “countries worldwide have been beating a path to his door” for trade talks​. Early movers will get the best deals, he has hinted, rewarding those like the United Kingdom and Japan who acted quickly, while slower actors like the EU must catch up​. In short, Trump’s firm stance is forcing even hesitant allies to engage on American terms, advancing his goal of fairer trade agreements.

Meanwhile, China finds itself increasingly isolated. Rather than divide the world against America, Beijing’s tariffs and fiery rhetoric have left it nearly alone in a showdown with Trump. The contrast is stark: as the EU echoes Trump’s pause, China’s communist leadership rolled out propaganda – even invoking Mao Zedong – to rally domestic support against U.S. pressure​. A Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman bizarrely posted archival Mao footage, a move U.S. observers called a desperate stunt​. State media in Beijing huffed that Trump’s tariff demands were “blackmail” and “extreme pressure”​, and Chinese officials insisted the U.S. was making a “mistake”​. But Trump’s resolve only grew. By hiking tariffs into triple digits, he made clear that China’s massive export machine will pay a steep price until it agrees to truly fair trade. The pain is already being felt: reports this week indicate shipping lines are canceling cargo sailings from China to the U.S. and Europe as tariffs bite​. Factories in China face potential closure, and even U.S. manufacturers that relied on Chinese supply chains are having to rethink operations​. Trump’s intended effect is to boost U.S. manufacturing and jobs, and indeed companies around the world now see an incentive to relocate production to America to avoid these tariffs. Beijing can either come to the table or watch its trade surplus with the U.S. evaporate. As one Chinese official grudgingly acknowledged, Trump “will not break.” The message from Washington to Beijing is unmistakable: the era of exploiting American markets is over.

Economic Victories and Validation of America First

Critics had long warned that Trump’s tariff strategy would boomerang on the U.S. economy by driving up prices for consumers – a “tarifflation” doom scenario. This week delivered a stunning rebuttal to that claim. The latest economic data show that inflation is not only under control, it’s actually reversing, despite (or perhaps thanks to) the new trade policies. In March, U.S. consumer prices fell by 0.1%, the first monthly decline in nearly three years​. This dip in the Consumer Price Index defied economists’ predictions (they expected a rise) and came as a pleasant surprise to American families. Even core inflation (excluding food and energy) rose a scant 0.1%, the smallest bump since Trump’s first term​. In short, prices are stabilizing. Far from triggering inflation, Trump’s tough stance coincided with the slowest annual price growth since early 2021​.

Economic observers are calling this a “significant political victory” for the President​. On the campaign trail, Trump promised to “end inflation and make America affordable again”, and he’s following through. Lower energy costs played a big role – gasoline prices fell over 6% in March​, aided by Trump’s pro-U.S. energy policies – but the broader point is clear: predictions of tariff-induced price spikes were wrong. As one report put it, March’s price drop “demonstrates Trump was right that prices could be brought down.” The robust jobs market and increasing domestic production may be offsetting import costs, helping consumers. It appears that by challenging globalist trade practices, Trump is rebalancing the economy in favor of everyday Americans without the harm skeptics anticipated.

There are still voices of caution, of course. Some small business owners, while supportive of confronting China, have expressed concerns about the speed and scale of tariff increases. In interviews this week, a few mom-and-pop manufacturers warned that the 145% China tariff could temporarily strain their supply chains​. One toy company CEO noted such tariffs might force him to raise prices ~40% and pleaded for a brief reprieve – a 90-day pause on China tariffs – to help firms adapt and stock critical inventory before the next holiday season​. These business owners agree with Trump’s goals but seek a bit of breathing room as the new trade regime kicks in. The Trump administration has already shown flexibility by granting a 90-day pause to allies; whether a similar grace period for certain U.S. small businesses is considered remains to be seen. Nonetheless, even these concerns underscore the life-or-death stakes of Trump’s mission to fix trade: after decades of offshoring, some American companies are struggling to reorient to new supply lines – but in the long run, many will benefit from a fairer marketplace. Short-term adjustments aside, the overall economic trends – booming factory orders, low unemployment, and now easing consumer prices – validate Trump’s America First strategy.

Indeed, Trump’s supporters are hailing this week as proof that strong leadership delivers results. The stock market’s big gains and the EU’s conciliatory moves are visible victories. Less visible but just as important is the psychological shift: America is regaining control of its economic destiny. Factories are humming and inflation is finally cooling, fulfilling Trump’s pledge to restore prosperity after years of stagnation and sky-high inflation under his predecessor​. In Washington, congressional Republicans are energized by the President’s triumphs on trade. Many are rallying behind Trump’s call for “U.S. supply chains, U.S. jobs, U.S. growth – period.” Legislation to lock in certain America First trade protections is reportedly in the works, aiming to prevent any future administration from undoing these tariffs without Congressional approval (a move cheered by Trump’s base). While opposition Democrats like Senator Jeff Merkley dismissed the tariff battle as an unserious “testosterone” contest between Trump and Xi, their skepticism is increasingly isolated​. Public opinion is swinging in favor of Trump’s tough trade stance, especially as tangible benefits – from better trade deals to cheaper prices – start to materialize.

A Triumphant Week for the America First Agenda

In summary, the past seven days have showcased President Trump at his best: fighting for American workers, defying the critics, and winning on the global stage. He has imposed tariffs to protect U.S. industries, stood firm against China’s provocations, and done so while boosting investor confidence and keeping consumer costs in check. America’s trading partners have heard the message loud and clear. Friends are negotiating; foes are reeling. Factories in Michigan and Ohio can look forward to a more level playing field, while Wall Street and Main Street alike are seeing that Trump’s bold moves are backed by sound strategy.

This strongly pro-Trump narrative finds support in the week’s headlines and data. Trump’s America First agenda is in full swing, and even detractors must admit: it’s been effective. As one conservative outlet gleefully noted, “Promises made, promises kept” – consumer prices are down, not up​. The stock market is up, not down​. And America’s standing in trade negotiations is higher than ever, with even the EU echoing Trump’s terms​. For supporters of the 45th President, it doesn’t get much better than that. This week’s developments underscore a simple truth: when President Trump says he’ll put America first, he delivers.