“I don’t see any immediate change to that,” Miran said.
Miran is one of the most ardent supporters of the tariff policy that Trump announced earlier this month. Before his current role in government, Miran was a strategist at Hudson Bay Capital where he authored a 41-page memo that serves as a guide for the Trump administration’s current tariff policy.
Tariffs, Miran argues, are critical to counteracting what he sees as a series of unfair trade practices by China, while simultaneously spurring increased investment in the U.S.’s manufacturing sector. Miran alleged China subsidizes exports to harm foreign competitors and that it unfairly restricted U.S. companies that operate in the country.
“There’s all sorts of asymmetries in that trading relationship,” Miran said. “The reciprocal tariffs the president put on China are reflective of that asymmetry, and a corrective on that asymmetry. So tariffs absolutely play a role.”
“It won’t be anywhere near that high,” Trump told reporters from the Oval Office. “It’ll come down substantially. But it won’t be zero.”
Miran’s comments indicate that, at least for now, tariffs will stay high.
Tariffs have roiled the markets since they were announced on April 2. Global stocks underwent a massive selloff, U.S. Treasury yields soared, and the dollar sank, signaling an unprecedented amount of doubt in the U.S. economy. To assuage investors, various administration officials have said that several trade deals with foreign countries are on the horizon. Investors hope that those will both provide clarity about the future of the U.S.’s trading relationships, while also hopefully lifting certain tariffs, thereby lowering costs for businesses and consumers.
