'Trade violence': Onlookers accuse Trump of 'manipulation' as he 'tanks markets'

Critics of President Donald Trump denounced Friday's announcement that he was "recommending" huge tariffs on the European Union as well as Apple, which — once again — caused the stock markets to take a dive.

Trump posted on social media that he was punishing the EU for being "very difficult to deal with" on trade by "recommending a straight 50% Tariff on the European Union, starting on June 1, 2025."

Trump also threatened Apple with a 25% tariff for not manufacturing iPhones in the United States.

Former GOP lawmaker Adam Kinzinger posted on X, "At this point trumps tariff threats are just stock market manipulation. Nobody will prosecute him. Just fyi: break the law today you better hope statute of limitations runs out… you will be held accountable eventually."

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Economist Justin Wolfers backed up Kinzinger's assertion with a chart showing the stock markets crashing.

"The single most reliable economic fact of the Trump presidency is that when he raises tariffs, markets tank," Wolfers wrote. "When he backs off, they rise. This matters because markets are assessing the future profitability of American business and any tariffs benefits are downstream of boosting profitability."

The account of @cpeedell, described as a campaigner for the National Health Service, wrote that Trump's market manipulation matters "because of the risk of corruption and gaming the markets amongst Trump loyalists who get the inside information on his decision making."

Crypto news site CoinDesk wrote that "The president woke up Friday and chose trade violence. Markets are headed sharply lower, with bitcoin tumbling from record high levels above $111,000," causing former Trump official Anthony Scaramucci to quip about Trump, "Needs attention. Poor guy."

Also responding to CoinDesk was commentator @EddyMetaX who told his 118,000 followers, "Trump can't wake up happy."

Tim Chapman, president of the conservative org Advancing American Freedom, bemoaned the challenges Trump's tariffs are posing to American business owners.

"On again, off again, deals, no deals, 10 percent, 30 percent, 145 percent, 50 percent…how is any American business supposed to plan in this environment?" Chapman wrote.