Today's Edition
WASHINGTON (AFP)
US President Donald Trump abruptly paused tariffs on most countries, sparking euphoria on global markets Thursday, but upped China's rate to 125 percent.
After days of turmoil, stocks on Wall Street and across Asia saw huge surges in reaction to Trump's announcement that he was halting a levy hike for almost all nations for 90 days.
But Trump also said he was raising tariffs on China to 125 percent because of a "lack of respect."
Beijing hit back with retaliatory tariffs of 84 percent on US imports, which came into effect at 12:01 pm on Thursday.
Trump has denied that he backtracked on the tariffs, telling reporters that "you have to be flexible."
He said he had been watching the "very tricky" state of the crucial US bonds market before his decision.
"I saw last night where people were getting a little queasy," he said, as US bond yields rose during the stocks sell-off -- a major economic red light as American sovereign government debt is normally seen as a safe haven for investors in troubled times.
Trump also predicted that trade deals will be made with all countries, including China, which has, for now, refused to roll back retaliatory tariffs on US goods.
Trump also said that he "can't imagine" increasing Chinese tariffs more than he has.
