US President Donald Trump, in his pursuit of financial reform, imposed a package of customs duties and taxes on imported goods. This comes amid worsening inflation, the depreciation of the dollar, and the unprecedented rise in domestic debt levels, which have increased significantly in just four years (2020-2024), exceeding the value of the US gross domestic product by more than 100%.
These tariffs were imposed largely against traditional adversaries, most notably China, and to a lesser extent against allies, represented by the European Union. This demonstrates once again that the United States' international interests are paramount. Although the US President reversed the announced tax rates, citing their haste, poorly considered, and illogical in some respects, the desired financial and economic results the United States sought did not bear fruit. The US government sought to reduce imports and stimulate economic sectors, primarily the industrial and technological sectors, as well as reduce inflation rates, which have caused a steady erosion in the value of the dollar. It also sought to expand available job opportunities through these measures, despite receiving huge sums of foreign investment projects from several regions, most notably the Gulf states, which could have achieved this. However, the hidden crisis the United States is suffering from due to its massive domestic debt and high interest rates has become a source of concern for economists, prompting President Trump to adopt this approach as a means of rescuing the current situation. The US's imposition of these tariffs and its negotiations with adversaries and allies to achieve them did not achieve the desired financial and economic results for several reasons, including:
- Most American products are produced in China at low costs that the United States cannot compete with, most notably the products of the global company Apple.
- The United States was unable to replace the products it intended to manufacture domestically due to the aforementioned costs, in addition to the lack of skilled labor available in other countries.
-The domestic debt continued to expand despite the use of interest rates to achieve this goal, to no avail.
In light of the above, these tax decisions were not truly effective in addressing the problems of the ailing capitalist system embraced by the United States, which has prompted most countries around the world to abandon it and move toward a mixed economy to achieve advanced economic results, foremost among these countries, China, the world's most prominent economic power.