He also issued a proclamation detailing “reciprocal tariffs” on dozens of specific countries effective April 9th, with rates totaling up to 54% on China.
The tariffs rattled global markets, with the S&P 500 plunging by 4.84% on Thursday and the Nasdaq Composite dropping by 5.97%.
Trump’s announcement also battered the crypto sector, with the overall digital asset market cap taking a 6.5% hit.
The president launched the Official Trump memecoin in mid-January, days before he took office. The asset has generated controversy in and out of crypto circles.
Ethereum (ETH) founder Vitalik Buterin said earlier this year that political coins represented “vehicles for unlimited political bribery.”
In a February letter to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Office of Government Ethics, officials at the nonprofit consumer advocacy organization Public Citizen argued that Trump could be in violation of federal law regulating gifts to government officials.
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