The "actual reason" always seems to be virtuous in the end. Like "omg Trump had such good intentions!!! He just made a lil implementation booboo". It's always giving mountains of good faith to people who have lied for decades and lie today. Nothing about the clear market manipulation or greed of the party.
I don't even think the market manipulation argument stands. That gives them too much credit.
Trump's hand was forced and he had to retreat. Like the market kept having little bursts before this, based simply on the core reality that this is a trade war that the US cannot stomach without extraordinary financial damage, so everyone just kept waiting for the out. It is far more exposed and doesn't have the "cards", as Trump says, that they think they have.
The guy really, really wants his tariffs, so who knows where we even are now. He will not, under any circumstance, back down. We saw that with Canada -- various pauses, then steel and aluminum tariffs, then car tariffs, then a 25% across the board tariff for non USMCA compliant goods. First he even targeted USMCA. Based upon a lie. He desperately wants these tariffs, and as the very special person he is, he has learned absolutely nothing from today and will be back at the trough when he thinks he gets another go.
The most amazing thing are the Trump faithful who hold this as a win. This is quite possibly the most disastrous outcome of all -- the uncertainty. It is going to be economic calamity for the US.
But maybe Trump can announce that Uganda has removed a tariff or something.
