Trump's Tariff Policy Shockwaves Rattle Markets, But Is That What's Needed?

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed the market's stumble Friday, tracing the slump chiefly to declines among the “Magnificent 7” (Mag 7)—Amazon, Tesla, Microsoft, Meta, Nvidia, and peers—rather than Trump's trade measures.

U.S. equities tumbled sharply Thursday, hours after President Donald Trump introduced expansive trade levies in what several analysts believe is a move to slow the economy and lower debt burdens.

The administration’s aim to orchestrate a downturn has been a subject of speculation throughout 2024, as February saw the year-to-date federal deficit hit $1.15 trillion—a 38% increase from 2024 and spurring urgent calls to cut spending.

This strategy, which the research firm The Kobeissi Letter claims was discussed and decided upon even before Trump’s January inauguration, has already seen trillions wiped from U.S. stock valuations and driven investors toward safe-haven assets like gold—which has been tapping new lifetime highs.

Cryptocurrencies and equities have also suffered steep losses. According to The Kobeissi Letter, Trump’s circle views a recession as the fastest path to lower rates ahead of the 2025 debt refinancing cliff.

“Does everyone saying we have a ‘great economy’ realize we are $37 trillion in debt and it costs over $1 trillion to service the debt?” asked Jacob Canfield. “The only way out is by refinancing our debt at lower interest rates. And the only way to get lower rates? Crash the market. Force the Fed’s hand. Make them cut rates. When rates drop the U.S. can roll over debt more cheaply. When you get cheap debt everything will go up. Short term: crash for real estate, stocks, and crypto and boom for gold and precious metals. Long term: new all time highs across the board.”

Canfield's analysis aligns with the thinking of Bitmex co-founder Arthur Hayes, who penned an April 3 note saying that the Fed will ultimately be forced to respond.

“Trump's tariff formula is further evidence he is laser focused on reversing these imbalances. We covered this in a prior note, but foreign surplus units largely invest in the U.S. and buy up dollar-denominated assets such as Treasuries to park their savings in a "safe" haven. But without a trade surplus, foreign entities have no reason to continue mopping up the riski installment of the U.S. financial system. This is partly why Trump pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and levied tariffs on China. He wants to reduce the U.S. trade deficit and shift the flows of capital back into the States. The problem for treasuries is that without $ exports foreigners can’t buy bonds. The Fed and banking system must step up to ensure a well functioning treasury market, which means Brrrr.”

Administration officials have also tipped their hand on this strategy in recent months. At a March 6 event, Commerce Secretary Lutnick stated plainly that the “stock market [is] not driving outcomes.”

Meanwhile, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent today addressed the market's stumble, attributing it to declines among the "Magnificent 7" (Mag 7)—Amazon, Tesla, Microsoft, Meta, Nvidia, and peers—rather than Trump's trade measures. He noted the Nasdaq's all-time high coincided with Chinese AI firm Deepseek's launch of advanced language models, sparking unease over the competitiveness of American tech investments in artificial intelligence (AI).

Bessent asserted, "That's a Mag 7 issue rather than a MAGA issue," framing the decline as specific to tech equities, not wider tariff shifts.

This view is shared by several observers, who suggest Trump's inner circle may be intentionally aiming for a downturn to facilitate restructuring the nation's towering debt obligations.

The strategy, which the research firm The Kobeissi Letter claims was discussed and decided upon even before Trump's January inauguration, has already seen trillions wiped from U.S. stock valuations and driven investors toward safe-haven assets like gold—which has been tapping new lifetime highs.

Cryptocurrencies and equities have also suffered steep losses. According to The Kobeissi Letter, Trump's team views a recession as the fastest path to lower rates ahead of the 2025 debt refinancing cliff.

"Does everyone saying we have a ‘great economy’ realize we are $37 trillion in debt and it costs over $1 trillion to service the debt?" asked Jacob Canfield. "The only way out is by refinancing our debt at lower interest rates. And the only way to get lower rates? Crash the market. Force the Fed's hand. Make them cut rates. When rates drop the U.S. can roll over debt more cheaply. When you get cheap debt everything will go up. Short term: crash for real estate, stocks, and crypto and boom for gold and precious metals. Long term: new all time highs across the board."

Canfield's analysis aligns with the thinking of Bitmex co-founder Arthur Hayes, who penned an April 3 note saying that the Fed will ultimately be