How leading economists are reacting to Donald Trump’s new ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs
French economist and former IMF chief economist Olivier Blanchard said the overall results of the tariffs would be “a recession, no gain. A general mess"
US President Donald Trump has announced the "Liberation Day" tariffs, imposing a baseline 10% tariff on nearly all US imports, with significantly higher rates for certain countries — the reciprocal tariff on India is 27%. This sweeping move has sparked extensive debate among economists, who have taken to social media to share their analyses and concerns. Here's a curated list of their insights.
Olivier Blanchard, a renowned French economist and former International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief economist tweeted on X (formerly Twitter), critiquing the tariffs, suggesting they may lead to unintended economic consequences. He said that the overall results of these tariffs will be “a recession, no gain. A general mess.”
Lawrence H. Summers, former U.S. Treasury Secretary who is currently the Charles W. Eliot University Professor and President Emeritus at Harvard University, criticised Trump for the stock market meltdown his announcement has caused.
Meanwhile, American economist and co-founder of the Center for Economic and Policy Research, posted on Bluesky, humorously comparing Trump's tariff rationale to a doctor using a patient's height-to-birthday ratio for health advice.
Iván Werning, an Argentine economist and the Robert M. Solow Professor of Economics at MIT, retweeted a chart which shows that the U.S. weighted average tariff, with all Trump's new orders in effect, will be higher than under Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act, which had led to the reduction of American exports and imports by 67% during the Great Depression. "The only hope is that the announced tariffs do not get implemented in full," he said.
Michael Pettis, an American professor of finance at Guanghua School of Management at Peking University in Beijing and a non-resident senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, posted his analysis as a thread on X, critiquing recent U.S. tariffs as ineffective for addressing systemic trade imbalances.
The "Liberation Day" tariffs have sparked a wide array of reactions from economists, reflecting deep concerns about potential disruptions to global trade, increased consumer prices, and economic instability. As the international community braces for the impact of these sweeping measures, these expert critiques highlight the need for careful evaluation and strategic dialogue to navigate the complex economic landscape ahead.
