China responded to the “Liberation Day” tariffs announcement swiftly last week, imposing 34% tariffs on all imports from the US from April 10. China also added 11 American companies to its unreliable entity list along with export controls on 16 US companies prohibiting exports of Chinese dual-use items.

The US then announced in response to China’s retaliatory measures that it will raise tariffs on Chinese imports to 104%. China retaliated again with an 84% duty on American goods. The EU has approved US$23.2bn of tariffs on US exports including almonds, orange juice, poultry, soybeans.

Finally as US trading ended Wednesday President Trump said he would pause tariffs on most countries for 90 days, with a 10% across the board tariff applied. The S & P 500 soared in response, which Trump will no doubt take credit for. Economists at Goldman rescinded their forecast for a US recession after Trump announced the pause. However Trump also ramped tariffs on China to 125%.