Photo: caricature of Trump by artist Hadi Asadi
Imagine a world where the economic rules built after the chaos of World War II are crumbling like a house of cards in a gust of wind. That’s exactly what happened on Saturday, when US customs agents began levying Donald Trump’s 10% tariff on imports from dozens of countries, from Australia to Saudi Arabia. But this is just the overture: next week, 57 key trading partners will face tariffs ranging from 11% to 50%. Reuters calls it a “seismic shift”, but we’d put it simply: Trump has just thrown a geo-economic grenade on the table, and global markets are already burning in its flames.
Tariff armageddon: first victims and exceptions
At 12:01 a.m. EDT (04:01 GMT), US ports, airports and warehouses became the frontline of a new trade war. The initial 10% “base” tariff is just a warm-up. On Wednesday, the rates will rise: The EU will get 20%, China will get an additional 34% (54% in total), and Vietnam, which has cunningly intercepted supply chains after Trump’s first trade war with Beijing, will get as much as 46%. Canada and Mexico have temporarily exhaled – their 25% tariffs related to the fentanyl crisis remained intact. But don’t be too happy about the exceptions: steel, aluminium, and auto parts are still under the 25% “national security” tariff, and the list of 1000+ exempt categories ($645 billion in imports) – from oil to semiconductors – looks like a temporary compromise before new blows.
Kelly Ann Shaw, a former White House adviser and Hogan Lovells think tank, called it “the biggest trade action of our lifetime” at the Brookings Forum on Thursday. Her prediction: Tariffs are not static. They will evolve as countries rush to the negotiating table to try to wrest concessions. But for now, it’s a chessboard where Trump is playing white and has already declared checkmate.
Markets are in a panic: $5 trillion evaporated
Wednesday’s announcement was an economic earthquake. In two days, the S&P 500 lost $5 trillion, a record drop that forced the Nasdaq into a bear market. Oil and commodity prices plummeted, investors rushed to the arms of government bonds, and the Wall Street Fear Index soared to a five-year high. China responded in kind by imposing tariffs on all American goods, and now analysts are whispering the word everyone fears: recession. Could a global trade war be the catalyst for a crash? The data speaks for itself: US indices fell 10% in 48 hours. This is not just a correction – it is a financial wake-up call.
Israel is in the game: Netanyahu flies to Trump
And now the most interesting thing for us: Israel is under attack. Exports to the US, its main ally and trading partner, will face a 17% tariff. For a country that just cancelled the last duties on American goods on Tuesday (98% of imports from the US are already duty-free thanks to a 1985 agreement), this is like a slap in the face after a handshake. Technology and medical equipment – key Israeli exports – could be severely affected. And this is where high diplomacy comes in.
On Monday, Benjamin Netanyahu may become the first foreign leader to sit down with Trump after the tariff shock. This was reported by three Israeli sources, and Axios was the first to reveal the details. The impromptu visit was born out of a phone call on Thursday, when Netanyahu challenged Trump to talks while in Budapest. The prime minister’s office has been silent, but the stakes are high: in addition to tariffs, the war with Hamas and the shadow of Iran are on the agenda. On Friday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio already conducted a battlefield reconnaissance, discussing the situation with Netanyahu. Will Israel succeed in wresting “special terms” for itself? This is a chess game where every move can change the balance of power.
Global puzzle: what’s next?
Trump is not just rewriting the rules – he is breaking the board that has been played for decades. His logic is simple but devastating: unilateral tariffs as an instrument of pressure, not cooperation. Vietnam is already signalling its readiness for a deal, the EU is preparing for counterattacks, and China is vowing to fight to the end. For Ukraine, which is dependent on trade with the West, and for Israel, whose economic well-being is tied to the United States, this is not just news – it is an existential challenge.
While markets are trembling and diplomats are preparing counterarguments, one thing is clear: Trump is not back to compromise. He is playing a winner-take-all game, and the world – from Wall Street to Jerusalem – is holding its breath for the next move. Will Netanyahu be the one to break this scenario? The answer is on Monday.
Author : Marianna Nyzhnia
