Trump says he will not change his mind on April 2 tariffs

He defends his use of tariffs, dismisses recent market volatility and vows that investors will eventually see gains for putting money to work now

Trump won’t change his mind on April 2 tariffs

US President Donald Trump holds an executive order about tariffs increase, flanked by US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, DC, US, Feb 13, 2025. REUTERS

Reuters

Published : 13 Mar 2025, 11:49 PM

Updated : 13 Mar 2025, 11:49 PM

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he was not going to change his mind on imposing sweeping reciprocal tariffs on all trading partners on April 2.

"We've been ripped off for years, and we're not going to be ripped off," Trump said during an Oval Office meeting with NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.

Trump has defended his use of tariffs, dismissed recent market volatility and vowed that investors would eventually see gains for putting money to work now.

"The European Union is very, very nasty," he said. "They're suing Google, they're suing Facebook, they're suing all of these companies, and they're taking billions of dollars out of American companies."

Trump said Facebook was going to invest $60 billion by the end of the year.