Economists Wrong About Trump Tariff Impact on Economy

What Happened President Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs imposed last year represented a dramatic shift in U.S. trade policy, with average tariff rates surging from approximately 3% to well over 20%. The Supreme Court recently declared these tariffs unconstitutional, prompting Trump to work on reimposing them. The economic impact, however, diverged significantly from expert predictions. Ben Harris, vice president and director of economic studies at the Brookings Institution and former assistant Treasury secretary for economic policy under President Biden, acknowledged that economists underestimated the resilience of the economic system.

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How Interest Rate Hikes Actually Stop Inflation: The Chain Reaction

What Happened The question of how Federal Reserve interest rate hikes translate into lower consumer prices has puzzled many Americans, particularly as the Fed raised rates from near-zero in 2022 to over 5% by 2023. The confusion is understandable: if higher rates mean savers earn more money, shouldn’t that make people spend more, not less? The answer lies in understanding that multiple transmission mechanisms work simultaneously, and the spending-reduction effects typically outweigh the wealth effects from higher savings returns.

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