United States

Trump imposes new tariffs while keeping door open to talks

Image Credits: UnsplashImage Credits: Unsplash

The return of Donald Trump’s trade tariffs in 2025 has triggered headlines, market unease, and another round of speculation over what this means for global business. The former president insists that these new measures—targeting imports from China, Mexico, and Europe—are not a signal of closed-door protectionism, but part of a larger plan to “negotiate better deals.”

But here's the real tension: there’s no clear deal on the table. No sequencing. No structure. Just a revived tactic without a revised strategy. This time, business leaders aren’t reacting with urgency. They’re responding with caution. Tariffs in 2018 reshaped global supply chains. Tariffs in 2025 are being read as signals of domestic instability, not economic intent.

Back in 2018, Trump's trade war was a disruptive—and at times effective—tool to extract concessions or stall competitive threats. But the global trade landscape has since changed.

Supply chain localization is now baked into the strategy decks of major manufacturers. Nearshoring is already underway, with US firms expanding in Mexico and Vietnam. The pandemic and geopolitical shifts—especially US-China tech decoupling—have made many companies less reliant on predictable US trade policy. So when Trump reinstates broad-based tariffs but says he’s still “open to negotiating,” it lands differently. The message isn’t taken as leverage—it’s taken as improvisation.

To understand why these tariffs lack force, it’s worth examining what’s missing. In trade negotiations, leverage isn’t just about applying pressure—it’s about sequencing incentives. Effective trade diplomacy is built around timelines, thresholds, and linked concessions: “Here’s the tariff. Here’s what we want in return. Here’s when it lifts.” Trump’s approach skips those steps. There is no transparent framework. Just a unilateral imposition of cost.

This creates two problems. First, partners like the EU and Mexico don’t know what terms would lead to de-escalation. Second, US businesses operating internationally have no clarity on whether to plan for temporary disruption or long-term divergence. In short, the tariffs feel more like campaign rhetoric than credible policy design. And international firms are treating them as such.

Outside the US, the response has been sharper—because it’s less politicized. European officials are already dusting off retaliatory measures and accelerating internal resilience plans, including industrial subsidies and sustainability-linked trade policies.

In the Gulf, trade ministries and sovereign funds are positioning themselves as neutral corridors. For example, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are actively marketing their ports and logistics hubs as buffers against US-China volatility. They’re not waiting for Washington to define its terms—they’re offering alternatives to those terms.

In Southeast Asia, where Vietnam and Malaysia have benefitted from past US-China friction, the response is more opportunistic. The assumption isn’t that the US will follow through on coherent trade reform—but that American unpredictability will keep driving investment into the region.

Trump has always relied on bold, declarative moves to shape perception. Tariffs serve that purpose well. They’re visible. They look like action. They poll well among protectionist-leaning voter blocs. But in strategic terms, optics without operational alignment can backfire. These tariffs may harden global perceptions of the US as an erratic negotiator. Worse, they may accelerate the very trends Trump wants to reverse: the diversification of global trade away from US-centric rules.

If the US wants to remain the anchor of global supply chains, it can’t afford to be seen as structurally unreliable. Tariffs without a plan only reinforce that perception.

For CEOs, trade heads, and investment strategists, the message is increasingly clear: build for volatility, not certainty. The 2025 tariff wave is not about sector protection or reshoring incentives—it’s about strategic improvisation wrapped in the language of economic nationalism.

That makes long-term planning harder. But it also clarifies the real task: de-risk exposure to US policy swings. Whether that means deeper investment in EU and ASEAN markets, or reorganizing sourcing structures to bypass high-tariff corridors, the imperative is the same—don’t wait for Washington to stabilize. This sentiment is becoming the default stance in boardrooms from Frankfurt to Dubai to Singapore.

There was a window in which Trump—or any US leader—could have used tariffs as part of a broader trade reinvention. Tied to climate, digital standards, or industrial policy, tariffs could be a bridge to a new multilateral framework. But that would require coherence, consistency, and strategic intent. Instead, the 2025 rollout looks like political theatre. And the business world is treating it accordingly—not as a call to engage, but as a signal to hedge.

Trump says he can still negotiate. But without a clear path to resolution or a defined counterpart at the table, these new tariffs aren’t negotiation tactics. They’re volatility generators. And for global businesses already adapting to a fractured trade environment, the message isn’t to prepare for a deal. It’s to prepare for disorder.

Tariffs may be the tool. But ambiguity is the policy.


United States
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 12:30:00 PM

If Trump keeps changing his mind on tariffs, why bother negotiating at all?

The 90-day clock has run out. What was once a bold declaration by the Trump administration to secure "90 trade deals in 90...

Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 11:30:00 AM

How Western companies profit from genocide

If you strip away the flags and the press briefings, genocide looks a lot like product-market fit. Not morally—but operationally. The incentives are...

Middle East
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 11:00:00 AM

Gaza ceasefire hostage deal gains ground as Israel, Hamas signal progress

A potential turning point emerged this week in one of the world’s most entrenched conflicts. After nearly nine months of war in Gaza,...

Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 11:00:00 AM

China exporters grapple with tariff uncertainty in 2025

There’s a reason more Chinese factory owners are watching TikTok instead of Bloomberg. And no—it’s not for the dance trends. It’s because creators...

Europe
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:30:00 AM

Study finds UK’s struggling high streets may need up to £5bn for revival

The UK isn’t short of shuttered storefronts. But the real vacancy is structural. A new report from the Centre for Cities lays out...

United States
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:30:00 AM

What Fed division on interest rate cuts signals for capital strategy

The Federal Reserve’s internal divide over the timing and rationale for rate cuts is no longer a footnote—it’s a strategic signal in its...

Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:30:00 AM

China deflation and tariff policy standoff rattles Hong Kong markets

At first glance, Hong Kong’s markets appear calm. The Hang Seng Index dipped less than 0.1% by mid-morning Thursday, and the tech-heavy subindex...

Malaysia
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:30:00 AM

The real story behind Malaysia’s SST expansion

While public debate on Malaysia’s expanded sales and service tax (SST) has intensified since July 1, most commentary misses the point. This is...

Singapore
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:00:00 AM

Singapore shares rise again as STI gains 0.3%

The July 9 session offered a striking juxtaposition: Singapore’s benchmark Straits Times Index (STI) nudged upward even as the White House confirmed new...

Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:00:00 AM

Pharma sector braces for fallout from Trump tariff threat

The pharmaceutical industry is staring down a policy signal it has never encountered: a proposed 200% tariff on imported drugs by 2026, paired...

Europe
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 10:00:00 AM

France and U.K. float extended nuclear protection for Europe

As Washington drifts deeper into domestic polarization and 2024's Trump resurgence looms, two of Europe’s nuclear powers—France and the UK—are beginning to signal...

Malaysia
Image Credits: Unsplash
July 10, 2025 at 9:30:00 AM

Malaysia stock market moves sideways as tariff anxiety grows

When a stock index trades sideways, it’s easy to call it boring. But boring is a strategy—and right now, the FBM KLCI is...

Load More