US President Donald Trump will speak at a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Norwegian Jonas Garstore in the oval office of the White House in Washington, DC on April 24, 2025.
Saul Roeve | AFP | Getty Images
President Donald Trump denied that the sale of a strong bond market affected his decision earlier this month, affecting his decision to curb offensive “mutual” tariffs on US trading partners.
“I wasn’t worried,” Trump said in an interview with Time magazine that he was asked about financial market turmoil after the announcement of the “liberation day” on April 2nd.
In the order, Trump slapped over 10% on all US imports, and released a list of tariffs on dozens of other countries. The extra taxation was based on the trade deficits the United States opposed to their respective countries, raising fears of inflation, a potential recession and the disruption of long-standing trade agreements.
After its release, the market rebounded. The Treasury was lower at first, but quickly snapped higher. The 10-year yield rose half points in just a few days. This is one of the fastest moves ever since investors dumped stocks and the US dollar.
Finally, Trump issued a 90-day stay on mutual tariffs to allow time for negotiations. But he said it wasn’t because of the market turmoil.
“No, that wasn’t because of that,” Trump said during an interview from Tuesday, which was released on Friday. “I do it until I come up with the numbers I want to come up with. I met many countries. I spoke on the phone.
The yields have since been lower, with the recent recent around 4.28%, about a quarter higher than the recent low points. Trump was saying when he decided to refrain from seizing the bond market to win “YIPS.”
“The bond market was getting YIPS, but I wasn’t because I know what we have,” he said. “I know what we have, but I know that if we allow for another four years of crudeness, we don’t have it for a long time. This thing was just running – it was running as a free spirit. This was the most incompetent president in history.”
Tax negotiations are ongoing, but Trump added that he will consider it a “complete victory” even if the US is still 50% taxed a year from now.
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