The Deadline is Approaching – Will Donald Trump Impose Tariffs that Stifle Bitcoin?

According to the Wall Street Journal, while President America Donald Trump seeks to impose comprehensive trade measures to reshape the American economy, the Trump administration is racing to finalize the details of its new tariff program before its self-imposed deadline of Wednesday. According to those familiar with the discussions, a key point of contention within the administration is whether to impose separate tariffs on U.S. trading partners, as Trump has hinted in recent weeks, or to revert to the promise of a general tariff that would affect most countries doing business with America. Trump previously tried to temper expectations regarding his so-called reciprocal tariff plan, but has recently signaled that he will take a tougher stance. Speaking on Air Force One on Sunday evening, the president stated that he would be “much more generous” compared to his previous promises about balancing the tariffs of the United States with those of other countries. But sources say that since then, he has urged his team to come up with plans to impose higher tariffs on more countries. Trump reinforced that stance on Sunday, stating that the tariffs would target “basically all” of America’s trading partners. The government is currently considering the possibility of applying a global tariff of up to 20% on most of America’s trade partners, a similar approach to the plan that Trump’s campaign supported for many months before the president shifted to a reciprocal tariff model in which the United States would impose tariffs corresponding to the rates applied by other countries. Despite the changes, a government official stated that the reciprocal tariff plan is still under consideration. Trump is said to have a tendency to impose tariffs on any country with which the United States has a trade deficit and wants to have a “clean bill” for each country, but no final decision has been made. Regardless of what the final plan is, the official added that the president wants this policy to be “big and simple.” That would suggest a broader approach beyond previous plans that focused on America’s largest trading partners, which account for about 15% of countries in the world. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent previously referred to those countries as “15 dirty countries” in interviews with the media. In addition to the general tariff levels, the government is also considering a range of specific duties by industry, potentially targeting critical minerals and related products, among other sectors. It is still unclear whether those tariff levels will be announced on April 2, but they are expected to be included in a trade policy review document set to be presented to Donald Trump on Tuesday.