Trump Tariffs Trigger a Flash Crash

In a plot reminiscent of Ocean's 13, Donald Trump and his friends could be setting up America for a crash of seismic proportions.

Phony math

The markets reacted with predictable horror at Trump's so-called "Liberation Day," sending markets reeling shedding trillions in value in just a matter of hours.

We may have concluded this was just poor policy by an inept president but for the brilliant discovery of the bizarre calculation underpinning Trump's Tariff policy.

Trump intends to charge countries tariffs determined by calculating a “Tariff Rate”.

• The trade deficit of a country

• Divided by the country's total exports to the US

• Is the "tariff rate"

Example: Indonesia exports $28B to us with a $17.9B deficit. $17.9B ÷ $28B = 64%, which Trump labels "Indonesia's tariff on America".

By the way, Journalist James Surowiecki deserves a permanent statue in the Rose Garden for figuring out the equation.