Trump's new trade war threat sends Dow plummeting almost 450 points

Trump announced new tariffs on goods from China on Thursday afternoon and sent the stock market tumbling.

At 1:25 p.m. Eastern time, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) stood at 27,121. At 1:26 p.m., Trump announced on Twitter “the U.S. will start, on September 1st, putting a small additional Tariff of 10% on the remaining 300 Billion Dollars of goods and products coming from China into our Country.”

By 1:50 p.m., the Dow plunged more than 350 points to 26,735.

By 2:25 p.m., an hour after Trump’s announcement, the Dow dropped even more, to 26,680, or 441 points lower.

Trump’s trade wars continue to hurt Americans from all walks of life. Household items like washing machines cost significantly more, and new tariffs on China will likely impact prices on items like shoes and toys in the U.S.

Even Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Trump’s tariffs are nothing more than a tax hike on working families.

The trade wars are hurting American industries as well. According to representatives of the industry, Trump’s policies are a major factor in 40,000 job losses from 2016-2018.

Farmers are being hit particularly hard, since China is retaliating against Trump by refusing to buy a variety of American agricultural products. Farms across the Midwest are filing for bankruptcies at record rates. Trump promised a bailout to all farmers, although 99% of the bailout is going to white farmers.

But no matter the harm he is causing, Trump continues to escalate his trade war with China.

In late June, Trump signaled cause for some hope, saying China would start buying U.S. agricultural products again. He was humiliated in mid-July when China did not do so, and Trump essentially begged China to start buying products via Twitter.

In his announcement of the tariffs, Trump once again admitted that China was not budging in the escalating trade war.

In March 2018, Trump bragged that trade wars are “good and easy to win.” A year and a half later, Trump’s trade wars continue to cause pain to farmers and families across the country, as well as tanking the stock market.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.