Hedge fund founder Spencer Hakimian, a frequent critic of the Trump administration, posted a lengthy rant to X on Thursday, breaking down how President Donald Trump's tariffs are coming down on businesses.
"A real life example of how braindead our tariff policies are," wrote Hakimian. "I have a friend who works in the gemstone business. The specific type of gemstone he buys & sells *only* comes from Sri Lanka — which got hit with a 30% tariff rate. He works in a building on 47th Street in New York. If he requests a parcel of gemstones to look through, pick out the ones he wants, and return the rest, he must nonetheless pay a 30% tariff on the value of the entire parcel. Even if he only buys 1-2 stones out of the 100 piece parcel."
Despite all of that, Hakimian noted, "The building *next door* to him, has a 'Free Trade Zone' designation. Which means that his competitor is allowed to order the entire parcel, not pay any tariff, and then simply pay the tariff on his final purchase. My friend? Got told to kick sand and deal with it by U.S. Customs. And now, his business is suffering tremendously, simply because he’s working out of the wrong building.
"2nd graders making mock lemonade stands are more sophisticated than the current U.S. government," concluded Hakimian.
Trump has dramatically increased tariffs since taking office, using them as threats and negotiating tools to demand trade deals with various countries. This week, he announced yet another extension of the deadline for new tariffs on Mexico to allow more time for trade talks.
The president's ability to unilaterally declare tariffs is currently being litigated in federal court, where a panel of appellate judges appeared skeptical he even has that authority under economic emergency law.