What to watch for as Trump’s ‘reciprocal’ tariffs kick in

At 12.01am EST (04:01 GMT) on Wednesday, United States President Donald Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs will kick in, ramping up a global trade war that has roiled stock markets and set businesses on edge.

Trump has long promised tariffs on US trade partners, including while on the campaign trail for the top job last year.

Some targeted duties, including those on steel and aluminium, have been in place for weeks.

On April 2, Trump unveiled his “Liberation Day” tariffs against dozens of countries, sending stock markets into a nosedive as investors digested the prospect of an end to the era of globalisation and free trade.

Since then, several prominent Trump supporters have raised concerns about his trade salvoes.

Bill Ackman, chief executive of hedge fund Pershing Square Capital Management, publicly called on the administration to pause the tariffs to give time for the US and its trade partners to strike deals.

On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt made clear that Trump had no intention of delaying the tariffs, despite more than 70 countries having reached out to begin negotiations.

As the midnight deadline approached on Tuesday evening, analysts were resigned to the tariffs becoming a reality.

“I expect the tariffs to go into effect as announced,” Gary Hufbauer, a non-resident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute of International Economics, told media.