President Trump blinked on Wednesday, pausing most of the tariffs he had sought to put on nations around the world.

The one big exception is China, now the focus of an escalating trade war. American tariffs on China now total 145 percent while China has sought retribution with levies on U.S. imports that it raised to 125 percent in the early hours of Friday.

Trump’s retreat on the broader international tariffs came after trillions of dollars had been wiped from the value of U.S. equities, bond markets started blinking warning signs and business leaders sounded the alarm over a possible recession.

Even Trump, always loath to admit to a climbdown, noted that investors had been getting spooked – “they were getting yippy” – and that he himself had been watching the moves in the bond market.

The markets rallied hugely on Wednesday afternoon in the immediate aftermath of the pause being announced. But they fell sharply again on Thursday as concern over the China situation appeared to take a firmer hold.

The Dow Jones Industrial average fell by more than 1,000 points, or by 2.5 percent. The broader based S&P 500 fell by about 3.5 percent and the tech-heavy NASDAQ fared even worse, falling by 4.3 percent.

The situation is fluid, and there is likely plenty of drama yet to come.

Beyond Trump himself, who are the winners and loses from the tariff tumult?

WINNERS

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent

Bessent has emerged in a stronger position within Trump world over the past week.

He has never come close to publicly breaking with the president, yet he was plainly a leader of the faction that was skeptical of........

© The Hill