Global Market Bulletin for May 2025

As perhaps you’ve heard, last week I placed new duties on some Japanese products in response to Japan’s inability to enforce their trade agreement with us on electronic devices called semiconductors.

 

Now, imposing such tariffs or trade barriers and restrictions of any kind are steps that I am loath to take. And in a moment I’ll mention the sound economic reasons for this: that over the long run such trade barriers hurt every American worker and consumer.