Fox News hosts were in damage control after the Dow fell over 200 points after Donald Trump’s announcement that tariffs against Mexico, China and Canada would begin on Feb. 1.
Anchor Sandra Smith called the drop “not a huge sell-off, but certainly a reaction.”
“Well they’ve still got 10 hours to try and avoid tariffs,” anchor John Roberts said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if the president hears from Canada and hears from Mexico. Maybe he gets a call from his friend Xi Jinping.”
Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, said Trump would impose a 25 percent tariff on Mexico and Canada, as well as a 10 percent duty on China because of “the illegal fentanyl that they have sourced and allowed to distribute into our country.”
“These are promises made and promises kept by the president,” Leavitt said at a press conference Friday.
The White House did not provide details on how the tariffs will be carried out. The U.S. does about $1.6 trillion of business annually with the three affected countries.
The tariffs are part of Trump’s plan to exert economic control on major trading partners to push his agenda on immigration and drug trade.
Economists worry that a prolonged trade war with key U.S. trade allies could, which has been cooling off.
