Yesterday marked President Donald Trump’s 100th day in office for his second term. He was rewarded with about 100 different news items and data points raising alarms about his tariff agenda.
Driving the news: Trump’s hundredth day was marred by a spat with Amazon, after a report claimed the e-commerce giant was considering displaying pre-tariff prices of items alongside current prices. An Amazon spokesperson later confirmed that this had been considered only for Amazon Haul, its low-budget Temu competitor, and wouldn’t be put into practice.
- Meanwhile, UPS said it will lay off 20,000 U.S. workers and close 73 facilities, citing the tariff-fuelled pullback from Amazon, its top customer, as the reason.
Big picture: These developments indicate the real economic pain Trump’s tariff regime is beginning to inflict on U.S. consumers, and how many people are already fed up with it. A new poll found that just 39% of Americans approve of how Trump is doing his job, down from 45% in February. Meanwhile, consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest level since May 2020.
- Consumers’ economic expectations have also fallen to their lowest level in 13 years, a pessimism that may be worsened by preliminary data out this morning, likely showing the U.S. economy just experienced its worst quarter since the pandemic.
Why it matters: The potential silver lining for Canada is that the more painful things get for U.S. consumers and businesses, the better the chance of the Trump administration easing or lifting tariffs.—QH