- President Donald Trump is pressing his staff to take a harder stance on tariffs as part of an effort to transform the US economy, sources told the Washington Post. That could include a universal tariff that hits most imports without regard to the country of origin. The discussions come right before April 2, which Trump has billed as “Liberation Day,” when his next batch of tariffs will be unveiled.
As part of an effort to fundamentally transform the US economy, President Donald Trump has been pushing his staff to get even more aggressive on tariffs, sources told the Washington Post.
That could include a universal tariff that hits most imports, no matter which country they are from, the report said, adding that Trump views a single duty as less likely to be watered down by exemptions.
Intense discussions are ongoing ahead of April 2, which Trump has billed as “Liberation Day,” when his next batch of tariffs will be unveiled.
For now, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s “dirty 15” plan to set tariffs on the 15% of countries that the administration considers the worst trading partners is seen as the most likely outcome, according to the Post.
“There’s still a lot of options still on the table. They are considering everything and trying very hard to make the idea of a reciprocal tariff both understandable to the American public and effective,” Wilbur Ross, Trump’s commerce secretary during his first term, told the Post. “They are quite correctly exploring every alternative in the hope they come to the best possible solution.”
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump has already slapped tariffs on China, Canada, Mexico, steel, aluminum and autos, while threatening duties on pharmaceuticals, chips, lumber and the European Union.
He said reciprocal tariffs would come out on April 2, but suggested he would show some “flexibility.” And earlier reports that said those would be more targeted raised hopes on Wall Street that their impact would be less severe.
But after stocks rallied, his announcement of the auto tariffs on Wednesday contributed to another selloff, which was also fueled by signs that tariffs were worsening inflation and consumers’ expectations of future inflation.
Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee recently warned that inflation expectations could become a self-fulfilling prophecy, and Boston Fed President Susan Collins has said tariff-induced inflation “looks inevitable,” adding that he suspects the central bank will hold rates steady for longer.
After their most recent policy meeting this month, Fed officials lowered their forecasts for economic growth and raised their inflation estimates, raising the specter of “stagflation.”
Meanwhile, surveys of consumers and businesses show that they are turning increasingly gloomy about the economy amid tariff uncertainty and mass federal layoffs. Even executives in deep-red states that voted for Trump say business conditions are collapsing.
And economists have been hiking recession odds, with some even seeing a 50-50 chance of a downturn.
Fitch Ratings previously estimated that If Trump carries out all his plans, the effective US tariff rate could hit 18% on average—the highest level in 90 years.
Trump has acknowledged Americans will feel “some pain” from his tariffs but that they are necessary to revitalize US manufacturing and rebalance trade to more favorable terms.
While several companies have pledged to set up more factories in the US, Wall Street has warned that tariffs meant to reshuffle the auto sector, which has closely integrated supply chains across Canada and Mexico, will create chaos.
Still, the White House said the Trump administration is committed to delivering on his vision restore the US industrial base.
“America cannot just be an assembler of foreign-made parts—we must become a manufacturing powerhouse that dominates every step of the supply chain of industries that are critical for our national security and economic interests,” spokesman Kush Desai previously told Fortune.
