Not a Typo: Trump Slapping ASTOUNDING 104% Tariff on China Tomorrow

Remember yesterday when President Trump issued that wild ultimatum to China via Truth Social – back down on your retaliatory tariffs today, or face an additional 50% levy from the US? Well, China didn't blink. And today, Tuesday, April 8th, the White House made it official: the economic smackdown is happening, and the numbers are truly staggering.

According to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, confirming details reported by CNN, President Trump is set to impose levies totaling an almost unbelievable 104 percent across all Chinese imports, effective tomorrow, Wednesday, April 9th.

Let's try to unpack that eye-watering figure. This isn't just the 50% penalty Trump threatened yesterday because China wouldn't cancel its own 34% retaliation. No, this 104% appears to be the terrifying sum of multiple layers of tariffs Trump has piled on:

• The initial 10% baseline tariff on Chinese goods imposed back in February (justified by fentanyl/immigration claims).

• Another 10% added in March, doubling that baseline to 20%.

• The upcoming 34% "reciprocal" tariff that was part of the broader package hitting dozens of countries tomorrow.

• PLUS the additional 50% penalty tariff because China dared to retaliate today.

Add it all up, and you get a trade policy that looks less like negotiation and more like attempting to vaporize imports with a financial death ray. For context, CNN notes that the average US tariff rate on Chinese goods hovered around 20% under recent administrations. Tomorrow, thanks to this multi-layered onslaught, it's set to soar past 100%.

China's reaction? About what you'd expect when facing down a 104% price hike on your exports. Their Commerce Ministry called it "a mistake upon a mistake," reiterated their vow to "fight to the end," and promised to escalate their own retaliation on US goods. So, de-escalation is clearly not on the menu.

Meanwhile, back in the US, the stock market, which had started Tuesday morning on a hopeful note, immediately began to tank after Leavitt confirmed the 104% plan. By mid-afternoon, the Dow, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 were all reportedly back in negative territory, signaling Wall Street's utter terror at this unprecedented move.

The White House, however, remains defiant. Leavitt told reporters that countries like China choosing to retaliate "are making a mistake." She channeled the President, declaring, "President Trump has a spine of steel, and he will not break." In a particularly bizarre twist, she added, "The Chinese want to make a deal, they just don’t know how to do it," while declining to offer any terms Trump might actually consider for lowering the tariffs. It's like saying you want someone to surrender but refusing to tell them the surrender conditions.

The implications for American consumers are stark. China was America's #2 source of imports last year ($439 billion worth!). Goods like toys, smartphones, computers, and countless other consumer electronics are heavily sourced from China. A 104% tariff virtually guarantees these items are about to get substantially more expensive, assuming they can even be imported profitably at all. Domestic industries reliant on Chinese components will suffer, and layoffs seem almost inevitable.

And don't forget – dozens of other countries are also facing their own new, albeit less astronomical, tariff rates hitting at midnight tonight. Leavitt expects those to go into effect too, though she vaguely mentioned Trump wants "tailor-made," not "off-the-rack," deals if countries want to negotiate.

So, here we are on April 8th, 2025. The administration is about to impose a triple-digit tariff on goods from one of the world's largest economies, seemingly indifferent to market panic, expert warnings, and consumer pain, all while daring Beijing to retaliate further. What does a 104% tariff even look like in practice? We're about to enter uncharted economic territory, folks. And it is, without a single shred of doubt, an absolutely mind-blowing Daily Dose of WTF.

Sources:

• CNN (Reporting WH confirmation of 104% total tariff on China, breakdown, Leavitt quotes, China reaction, market impact, consumer goods affected, context on other countries' tariffs, April 8, 2025 – based on user-provided text)

• AP News (Context from previous reports on Trump's initial 50% threat and China's "fight to the end" response, April 8, 2025)