1 week Ago By France 24
Despite acknowledging a "transition cost" and "problem", US President Donald Trump on Thursday insisted that his trade war on the global economy will end up "a beautiful thing", after the President simultaneously paused tariffs on the EU and increased those on China to 145%. Jitters about US tariffs hammered Asian stocks again early Friday as President Donald Trump acknowledged a "cost" to his surging trade offensive against superpower rival China . The US leader said Thursday that the European Union was "very smart" to back off from imposing retaliatory tariffs because of his tough stance on China even as the bloc's chief warned it could tax US Big Tech.
"(The EU) were ready to announce retaliation. And then they heard about what we did with respect to China..
. and they said, you know, 'We're going to hold back a little bit,'" Trump said. Trump acknowledged "a transition cost and transition problems," but dismissed global market turmoil.
"In the end it's going to be a beautiful thing." On Wall Street , the broad-based S&P 500 finished down 3.5 percent on Thursday after soaring 9.
5 percent the day before. The Dow Jones shed 2.5 percent and the Nasdaq 4.
3 percent. The White House on Thursday clarified that tariffs on Chinese imports are now at a staggering total of 145 percent. Read more on FRANCE 24 English Read also: Trump warns of 'transition cost' as uncertainty over tariffs lingers Stocks soar as Trump backtracks on some tariffs.
