In the view of the Russian government, the world economy is “in turmoil” following President Trump’s rollout of sweeping tariffs, and the fresh package of duties he slapped on countries all over the world might not be advantageous for the Kremlin either.
“It’s unlikely that these U.S. tariffs will be beneficial. The global economy is responding very emotionally to these decisions,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said during a briefing on Friday, according to multiple outlets. “We are witnessing a high level of turbulence in international markets, and of course, the world economy is currently in turmoil.”
“I wouldn’t say it’s in our interest,” Peskov said on Friday. “Russia, for obvious reasons, is not included in this list – because we do not have any tangible trade with the United States.”
Trump this week presented a 10 percent flat rate tariff that will apply to all imports entering the U.S.. He also introduced reciprocal tariffs on dozens of nations worldwide, ones that range from 10 percent to 50 percent.
“The tariffs will be not a full reciprocal. I could have done that, I guess. But it would have been tough for a lot of countries,” Trump said on Wednesday.
The president and his administration argued that tariffs are needed to bring back manufacturing to the country since, from their perspective, the U.S. has been treated unfairly in current trade deals with both economic partners and geopolitical allies.
As the tariffs went into effect, the global markets went downhill. Additionally, some nations are already retaliating.
On Friday, China, one of the U.S.’s biggest trading partners, shared that it will impose a 34 percent reciprocal tariff on U.S. goods starting next Thursday.
The president encouraged investors Friday morning that now is a “GREAT” time to get rich.
For some in the U.S., the new tariffs will yield benefits in the long term, including for workers.
“I think it’s a step in the right direction,” the president of Massachusetts-based Capone Iron Corporation, Stephen Capone, said in a Thursday interview with NewsNation. “I think once all the dust settles, that people will realize that they’re going to be buying steel from American mills.”