orange monday (12. 373)

Dismissing the idea floated a ninety-day pause on imposing blanket tariffs worldwide to allow targeted exporters time for negotiation as “fake news” and digging into his posture of havoc and disruption, threatening China with an additional fifty percent duty on top of those already levied in response to reciprocal imports coming in from the US, investor uncertainty is pushing world stock markets into bear territory—the term derived from traders who engaged in short-selling assets with a commodity to back it up, the “bear-skin jobbers” selling pelts (the stock) before the bear was caught and marks a period of fear and pessimism. Faced with a rate exceeding one hundred percent, China vowed further retaliation and ready for a war of attrition. The above talk of a period of temporary stoppage from a bogus tweet picked up by several outlets out of hope and desperation caused multi-trillion dollar swings before the reprieve proved false. Though Europe and the UK seem to be better placed to weather the shock, repercussions won’t necessarily be contained by the US economy with inflation, job-cuts and slowed growth all around. The spillover effects of a wider, protracted conflict of protectionism will have lasting implications and may signal a change in international trade and economic integration.