US President Donald Trump's flip-flop on tariffs has led to significant volatility across stock markets over the past few months. It has also made media and market analysts come up with a moniker that the leader is not fond of- TACO, short for Trump Always Chickens Out. Trump lost his cool at a reporter after he was asked about ‘TACO trade' on Wednesday during a White House event.
The Republican leader was at the Oval Office for the swearing-in of the new acting Attorney General Jeanine Pirro.
Trump Answers 'TACO' Trade Question
When questioned about TACO trade with reference to his back-and-forth on tariffs over China and the European Union, Trump called it “the nastiest question.” The US President said that he had never heard of the phrase before Wednesday.
"I chicken out? Oh, I've never heard that. You mean because I reduced China from 145% that I set down to 100 and then to another number?" Trump said, referring to his tariffs on China, which are now at 30%.
He claimed that his negotiating approach has amounted to $14 trillion worth of new investment in the US, a figure that has not been fully verified by economic data, as per the Associated Press.
The US President also said that the EU leaders pleaded with him to “meet right now”, he agreed to delay the imposition of levies on goods from the European Union till July 9. He doubled down on his decision related to tariffs on foreign goods and told the reporter, “Don't ever say what you said.”
The first rule of the taco trade is that you don't tell Trump about the taco trade.
May 28, 2025
pic.twitter.com/D1kqACMPkhWhat Does TACO Trade Mean?
The term ‘TACO' was first coined by Financial Times commentator Robert Armstrong, as reported by CNN. It is based on Trump's tactic of announcing high tariffs on countries and then reducing the amount. Markets have been on a roller-coaster ride due to this, with investors selling off due to tariff threats, which imply slower economic growth. Stocks have rebounded after Trump stepped back from his tariffs.
AdvertisementThe US President's tariff announcement on Chinese goods is one example of his volatile policies. Trump announced 145% tariffs on Chinese goods, only to reduce them to 30% for 90 days. Similarly, he threatened to impose a 50% levy on EU goods from June, only to pause the decision till July 9. The imposition of universal tariffs on April 2 witnessed a similar back-and-forth.
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