On Sunday evening, President Donald Trump stated that he is not deliberately orchestrating the current stock market downturn, yet offered little reassurance to quell concerns.
“I do not wish for anything to decline, but at times, you must take the medicine necessary to remedy the situation,” Trump remarked to reporters traveling with him on Air Force One when questioned about the financial markets.
These remarks coincided with a drop in U.S. stock futures on Sunday night, with Dow Jones Industrial Average futures decreasing by 4.1%, building on losses from Thursday and Friday, suggesting more selling could occur on Monday morning.
He pointed to the trade imbalance with China as justification for continuing his tariffs strategy despite the recent market distress.
“We need to address our trade deficit with China,” he asserted. “We are facing a trillion-dollar trade deficit with China, resulting in hundreds of billions of dollars in losses annually. Unless we tackle this issue, I will not strike a deal.”
“I am open to negotiations with China,” he continued, “but they must address their surplus.”
Trump also noted his discussions with leaders from Europe and Asia over the weekend regarding the tariffs implemented by his administration, which are set to come into effect this week.
The remarks from Trump align with comments made by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who stated on Sunday that the administration will remain resolute in its approach to reciprocal tariffs against key U.S. trading partners, even amidst the global stock market decline. White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett remarked that the downturn in the stock market is not part of any intentional scheme.
These statements from Trump and his team follow the president sharing a link to a video on his Truth Social account, which claimed he was intentionally driving the markets down as part of his broader economic agenda.
The video, which first surfaced on TikTok in March, was shared by Trump on April 4, just days after his tariffs announcement.
