Former President Barack Obama has spoken out about Donald Trump’s tariff plans as markets continue to fall.

Trump unveiled new tariffs. Credit: Chip Somodevilla / Getty

Trump announced a sweeping set of tariffs on April 2, 2025, dubbing the day “Liberation Day.”

The new policy imposes a universal 10% tariff on all imports, with significantly higher rates for 60 countries identified as “worst offenders.”

Notable among these are Japan at 24%, South Africa at 30%, Vietnam at 46%, and China facing a steep 34% tariff, raising its total effective rate to 54%. ​

Speaking from the White House Rose Garden, Trump declared: “We’ve been waiting for a long time.

“April 2, 2025, will forever be remembered as the day American industry was reborn, the day America’s destiny was reclaimed, and the day that we began to ‘Make America Wealthy Again’.”

He further asserted: “For decades our country has been looted, pillaged, raped and plundered by nations, near and far, from both friend and foe alike.”

Donald Trump. Credit: Andrew Harnik / Getty

The immediate aftermath saw significant turmoil in financial markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 5.5%, the S&P 500 fell 6%, and the Nasdaq Composite entered bear market territory.

Investors expressed concerns over rising costs for businesses and consumers, fearing a potential recession.

Obama weighed in on the developments during an appearance at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York.

He remarked: “I have deep differences of opinion with my most immediate successor — who’s now president once again.”

Obama continued: “I don’t think what we just witnessed in terms of economic policy and tariffs is going to be good for America.”

He also expressed broader concerns about the current administration’s approach to governance, stating: “I’m more deeply concerned with a federal government that threatens universities if they don’t give up students who are exercising their right to free speech. ​

“I am more troubled by the idea that a White House can say to law firms, ‘If you represent parties that we don’t like, we’re going to pull all our business or bar you from representing people effectively.’”

Then, he issued a rather telling eight-word remark on the subject, asking: “Imagine if I had done any of this?”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also criticized the tariff strategy, warning that it could harm the U.S. economy.

He stated: “The business community is totally nervous about this. What makes it cause a recession? Businesspeople like certainty, and when Trump is all over the lot, issues new things every day, and it’s so erratic, and now we have China retaliating.” ​

Obama has spoken out. Credit: Spencer Platt / Getty

In response to the U.S. tariffs, China announced a 34% retaliatory tariff on all U.S. imports starting April 10.

The Chinese finance ministry criticized the U.S. measures as “not in line with international trade rules,” labeling them as “a typical unilateral bullying practice that endangers the stability of the global economic and trade order.”