April’s economic landscape was shaken by the Trump administration’s “Liberation Day” tariffs, which were announced on April 2. This initiative imposes a universal tariff in an effort to address what the administration described as years of unfair trade practices.
In Miami and across Florida, the impact of these tariffs was especially significant due to a large reliance on international trade. Sectors like construction and retail reported projected losses of up to 40% due to higher costs for imported materials from China. Experts warned that the average Floridian, including college students, could pay an additional $1,000 to $2,000 per year on everyday goods.
Ryan Carell, a finance major, expressed his uncertainty about the future of the economy.
“I don’t know what the next move will be, but people are definitely talking about the tariffs on campus. Hopefully it settles down soon,” said Carell.
This announcement sent shockwaves through global markets, prompting a rare coordinated response from U.S. trading partners. China, Japan and South Korea publicly announced they would respond in unison, with South Korea’s trade ministry spokesperson calling the tariffs “somewhat exaggerated.”
The tariffs were met with backlash from American businesses with many expressing concern about the future economy and rising inflation rates. In response, the White House issued a significant policy shift on April 9. The administration temporarily paused the country-specific tariffs, which had been set at differing rates, and instead lowered most U.S. allies’ rates to a flat 10%.
However, it was clear that the new focus was mainly on Chinese imports, raising duties to 125%. This “rate” is the percentage of a product’s value importers pay as a border tariff — for example, a 125% tariff means an importer pays $125 in tariffs for every $100 worth of goods imported from China. Notably, the White House later clarified that this 125% rate is in addition to an existing 20% tariff, bringing the total effective tariff on most Chinese imports to 145%.
On Friday, April 11, the White House announced that microchips, computers, and smartphones would be exempt from the tariffs, which are among China’s largest export categories. This move was designed to alleviate some of the pressure on American technology companies and consumers.
This policy allows U.S. tech companies that depend on Chinese manufacturing to avoid steep tariff costs, helping prevent higher expenses and potential price spikes for American consumers. At the same time, the exemptions benefit Chinese firms by maintaining a vital source of revenue from major tech exports to the U.S.
The market’s reaction during the early stages was severe. The stock market lost a collective $536 billion in the two days following the tariff announcements. The Fear and Greed Index, which measures daily investor sentiment, hit a low of 4 in early April before recovering slightly to 19 currently – still in the “extreme fear” category. Furthermore, Americans’ expectations for inflation rose to their highest level since 1981, reflecting their anxiety over the rising prices.
Conversely, large banks such as Bank of America and Citigroup have reported large first quarter profits with a surge in trading revenue. This suggests that for the time being, larger-scale corporations and businesses are not aligned with the public outlook.
The coming weeks will test whether the drastic policy changes can stabilize the markets and restore confidence once again or if more turbulence is to come.