Can the trade truce hold—or just delay more pain? In a classic Friday-afternoon maneuver, President Trump extended the U.S.-China tariff pause by 90 days, just hours before a sharp hike was set to take effect. The move—welcomed by multinationals—keeps tariffs at an already elevated 30% for Chinese imports and 10% on U.S. goods sold to China. If the deadline had lapsed, both sides were poised to reimpose triple-digit duties, reviving the specter of a trade war that could upend global supply chains and agricultural exports (Channel 3000).
The extension buys time for ongoing negotiations, but uncertainty remains the only constant. Wall Street and Main Street alike are learning: with U.S. tariffs now averaging 18.6%—the highest since 1933—shocks can come (and be reversed) almost overnight.
