Trump's New Tariffs, Explained Simply

The executive order explaining President Trump's new "reciprocal tariffs" and more

Hello Readers,

As we are sure you are all aware, President Trump released a sprawling new set of tariffs today, primarily aimed at a number of countries that allegedly charge especially high tariffs on US good but affecting all countries that import products into the United States [1,2]. He outlined these new tariffs, as well as why they were being imposed, in a speech today in the White House Rose Garden [2].

Alongside this, the Trump Administration released an executive order titled “Regulating Imports with a Reciprocal Tariff to Rectify Trade Practices that Contribute to Large and Persistent Annual United States Goods Trade Deficits” [1]. This order gives more context for the tariffs, and is far more comprehensible than President Trump’s Rose Garden address. It declares a national economic emergency based on the United States’ $918.4 billion trade deficit in 2024, citing an immediate need for change regarding the trade policies of the United States [1,2].

Under the new system, all …