Donald Trump Halts Planned Tariff Increases for All Nations Except China, SA Criticises US President

• Donald Trump has backtracked on earlier plans as he paused his tariff hike implementation for 90 days
• Trump's administration will still target China, raising the tariff rate to 125%, effective immediately
• South Africans questioned whether Trump knew what he was doing with his back-and-forth decisions

Briefly News journalist Byron Pillay has dedicated a decade to reporting on the South African political landscape, crime, and social issues. He spent ten years working for the Northern Natal Courier before transitioning to online journalism.

South Africans are wondering what is going on with Donald Trump after his latest decision.

The President of the United States of America has backtracked on his earlier decision to impose a universal 10% rate for all trade partners. Some countries, like South Africa, were hit harder, but Trump has since put a hold on those plans.

Trump pauses planned tariff hike

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After his initial announcement on 2 April 2025 caused widespread mayhem in global markets, the US President has backtracked on his plans.

On 9 April, the Trump administration authorised a 90-day pause on its tariff plan. White House advisors claimed that the President’s tariff hike and then pause was always the strategy.

His decision came as a surprise to many, as he has for the past few days insisted that tariffs would not be lifted, despite the turmoil it created for global markets.

You can view his announcement below.

Trump claims people were getting ‘yippy’

Speaking to the media on 9 April after his decision, Trump claimed that he put a pause on the tariff implementation because people “were getting a little bit yippy”.

“Well, I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy, you know, they were getting a little bit yippy, a little bit afraid,” he said.

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China vows to fight back against Donald Trump's tariffs, economic powerhouse accuses US of blackmail

He stated that no other president would have done what he did, adding that it had to be done.

Trump still targets China despite tariff pause

While he paused the tariff implementation for all trade partners, Trump raised the tariff rate for China.

The White House confirmed that China was not exempt from the President’s announcement, and instead, the tariff rate would jump to 125%, effective immediately, for the Asian nation. The decision comes after Beijing announced an 84% tariff rate on US goods, effective from 10 April.

The Asian country said it would not back down from the USA's actions, describing it as a form of blackmail.

South Africans weigh in on Trump’s reversal

Social media users weighed in on Trump’s latest decision, with many criticising the US President.

Letlhogonolo Mose said:

“This guy has a serious case of both bipolar and narcissistic personality disorder. His behaviour is putting his country and the world in a very difficult position. He's not fit to lead at all.”

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Bongiwe Mtshali stated:

“He literally has no idea what he is doing.”

Jacques Nel asked:

“He doesn’t really follow through on any of his plans, does he? How far is the wall after nine years? 🤣”

Pabatso Rankhakile Sparks added:

“This guy thinks he is running a stokfvel and not a country.”

Matebele Letebele said:

“I think this madala has mental issues.”

China imposes tariff hike on US goods

Briefly News also reported that China wasn't backing down from Trump's actions against the country.

Following Trump's tariff increases against the Asian country, China fired back with a tariff increase of its own.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry also stated that the US needed to stop its arrogant and bullying behaviour.

Proofreading by Roxanne Dos Ramos, copy editor at Briefly.co.za.

Source: Briefly News