Donald Trump announced a massive tariff plan last week that would have upended the global economic order as well as long-established trading relationships with America's allies.
But that plan - or at least a significant part of is - is on ice after the president suspended higher tariffs on most countries for 90 days while leaning into a trade war with China.
So with this partial reversal, is Trump any closer to realising his goals on trade? Here's a quick look at five of his key ambitions and where they now stand.
1) Better trade deals
What Trump said: For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike
Trump's original trade plan packed a big punch that landed around the world, with a flat 10% baseline tariff on everyone (including some uninhabited islands) and additional "reciprocal" tariffs on the 60 counties that he said were the worst offenders.
It sent allies and adversaries scrambling, as they stared down the prospect of a debilitating blow to their economies.
The White House has been quick to boast about all the world leaders who have reached out to the president to make deals and offer trade concessions – "more than 75", according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Although the administration hasn't released a list of all the countries that Trump said on Tuesday were "kissing my ass" and promising to do anything, the US has announced it is in negotiations with South Korea and Japan, among others.
The takeaway: America's trading partners have 90 days to strike some sort of agreement with Trump, and the clock is ticking. But the fact that talks are happening indicates that the president has a good chance of getting something for his efforts.
What Trump said:Jobs and factories will come roaring back into our country…We will supercharge our domestic industrial base.
Trump has said for decades that tariffs are an effective way of rebuilding America's manufacturing base by shielding it from unfair foreign competition. While some factories may be able to increase production in current facilities, more substantive efforts take time. And for business leaders to pull the trigger on "reshoring" their production lines and investing in new US factories, they will want to know that the rules of the game are relatively stable.
The president's on-again, off-again tariff moves over the past week are inherently unstable, however. For the moment, it's difficult to predict where the final tariff levels will land and which industries will receive the greatest protections. It could be auto manufacturers and steel producers today, and high-tech electronics companies tomorrow.
The takeaway: When tariffs are applied and removed seemingly at the president's whim, it's much more likely that companies – both in the US and abroad – will hunker down and wait for the dust to settle before making any big commitments.
Watch: Why US markets skyrocketed after Trump tariffs pause
3) Facing off with China
What Trump said:I have great respect for President Xi of China, great respect for China, but they were taking tremendous advantage of us.
After Trump's tariff about-face on Wednesday, several White House officials – including Treasury Secretary Bessent - were quick to say that Trump's goal was to drop the hammer on the real villain, China.
"They are the biggest source of the US trade problems," Bessent told reporters, "and indeed they are the problem for the rest of the world.
If Trump wanted a battle of wills with China, testing each side's tolerance for economic and political pain, he got one – even if the president and his aides have hinted that they are looking for an exit ramp.
On Wednesday, Trump said that he blamed past US leaders, not China, for the current trade dispute. The prior day, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the president would be "incredibly gracious" if China reaches out to make a deal.
The takeaway: Even if this showdown is one Trump wants, picking a fight with the second-largest economy in the world, with military power to match, comes at enormous risk. And along the way America may have alienated the allies it needs most in such a confrontation.
What Trump said:Now it's our turn to prosper, and in so doing, use trillions and trillions of dollars to reduce our taxes and pay down our national debt, and it'll all happen very quickly.
During last year's presidential campaign, Trump regularly touted that his proposed tariffs would bring in vast sums in new revenue, which the US could then use to shrink its budget deficit, fund tax cuts and pay for new government programmes.
A study last year by the nonpartisan Tax Foundation estimated that a 10% universal tariff – which is what Trump has landed on for at least the next 90 days – would generate $2tn in new revenue over the next 10 years.
To put that in context, the tax cuts Congress recently included in its non-binding budget blueprint would cost approximately $5tn over the next 10 years, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center.
The takeaway: Trump wanted more tariff revenue, and if he sticks with his baseline tariffs, plus the additional levies on certain imports and larger ones on China, he's going to get it – at least until Americans switch to more domestic production, when the tariff money gusher could turn to a trickle.
What Trump said:Ultimately, more production at home will mean stronger competition and lower prices for consumers. This will be indeed the golden age of America.
Analysts and experts have offered a grab bag other explanations about why Trump made such an aggressive move on trade last week. Was he trying to drive down interest rates, or devalue the US dollar or bring the world to the table for a new, global agreement on trade? The president himself hasn't spoken much about those kinds of elaborate schemes.
One thing he has talked about relentlessly, however, is his desire to lower costs for American consumers - and he has promised that his trade policy will help address this. While energy prices dipped in the week since Trump announced his tariff plan, that may have been a result of fears that the trade wars could trigger a global recession.
The consensus among economists is that new tariffs will drive up consumer prices, as tariffs are tacked on to the price of imports and, eventually, when there is less competition for US-made products. Last year, the Tax Foundation estimated that a 10% universal tariff would increase costs for American households by an average of $1,253 in its first year. Economists also warn that lower-income Americans will be hardest hit.
The takeaway: An increase in prices is an arrow moving in the wrong direction – and it represents an enormous potential liability for both Trump's political standing and his party's future electoral prospects.
A new type of drug for one of the most common kinds of advanced breast cancer is now available on the NHS in England.
Some 3,000 women a year could benefit from capivasertib after a clinical trial showed it can slow progression of the disease, and shrink tumours in a quarter of people.
The drug has been given the green light for NHS funding by England's drug assessment body.
It's one of a range of treatment options available to people whose cancer has spread and is no longer curable, but a cancer charity said breast cancer drugs should be approved more quickly.
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in the UK, with one in seven women affected in their lifetimes and 75% surviving for 10 years or more after diagnosis.
If the cancer returns and spreads to other parts of the body, treatments aim to control it, reduce the symptoms and improve quality of life.
Possible treatments include chemotherapy, radiotherapy and drugs that help to stop the cancer growing - either by blocking hormones, boosting the body's immune system or targeting what makes cancer cells grow.
This new drug capivasertib is a targeted therapy. It works in a new way, blocking the activity of a protein molecule called AKT which drives cancer growth.
Scientists started working on the drug's development 20 years ago and say it's the most effective cancer drug they've seen for advanced cancer.
"It presents a very effective option that can work for a long time - many months, and in some people it can be years," said Prof Nick Turner, lead researcher and professor of medical oncology at the Institute of Cancer Research and The Royal Marsden.
"It can substantially delay chemotherapy which many women fear because of the side-effects," Prof Turner added.
"Advanced breast cancer is highly treatable and we want kinder, better treatments."
'Four years of extra time'
Linda says the drug has given her extra years of life
Linda Kelly, 67, is a keen gardener who keeps active by cycling 60 miles a week. She also does pilates.
Breast cancer has spread to her bones and chest wall.
But she's had "fantastic" results from the new drug capivasertib.
"It does let you have a normal kind of life and you forget you have cancer," she said.
"You feel the drug is working and you can be a lot calmer - it's given me nearly four years of extra time."
Linda and her husband are now planning to travel. She says the drug has given her hope.
"It does make you think about your life, and what you want to do with your life in the future - but at least you feel well enough to make those plans and confident enough as well to fulfil some of those plans."
The drug is suitable for those with certain gene mutations that affect up to half of people with hormone receptor positive secondary breast cancer - the most common type, which grows in the presence of oestrogen.
Professor Peter Johnson, clinical director for cancer at NHS England, said it offered "an additional option" for some whose cancer has progressed despite previous hormone therapy - but it wouldn't be suitable for everyone.
Claire Rowney, chief executive at charity Breast Cancer Now, said she was "delighted" that the drug would offer some people "the hope of more precious time to do what matters most to them".
But she said patients had "faced unnecessary delays in accessing it" after the drug was initially rejected by NICE, and breast cancer drugs should be approved more quickly for those who need them.
"NHS England must now put in place prompt genetic testing to ensure those eligible receive capivasertib without further delay," she said, adding that Scotland should also consider funding the treatment quickly so that patients across the UK would have access.
Egypt forward Mohamed Salah has signed a new two-year contract with Liverpool.
His previous deal was scheduled to run out in the summer and there had been doubts he would stay with the Reds following comments from the 32-year-old during the season as well as speculation linking him with a move to Saudi Arabia.
However, he will now have the chance to add to his 243 goals and 109 assists for Liverpool in 393 appearances.
"Of course I'm very excited - we have a great team now," said Salah.
"Before we also had a great team. But I signed because I think we have a chance to win other trophies and enjoy my football.
"I have played eight years here, hopefully it's going to be 10. I'm enjoying my life here, enjoying my football. I have had the best years of my career here."
Salah has scored 32 goals in all competitions this season, including 27 in the Premier League as the Reds chase a 20th top-flight title. Liverpool are 11 points clear of second-placed Arsenal with seven games remaining.
Salah, who joined Liverpool from Roma in 2017, has won the Champions League, Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and Fifa Club World Cup with the Reds.
He was one of three key Liverpool players who will be out of contract this summer, along with right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold and centre-back Virgil van Dijk.
Netherlands defender Van Dijk has said there has been progress on talks over a new deal but Alexander-Arnold has been heavily linked with a move to Real Madrid.
Amid uncertainty about his future, Salah has already had his second-best season in terms of league goals at Liverpool in 2024-25. With seven games left, he could feasibly reach the 32 he scored in his first campaign.
In September, he said in a Sky Sports interview it was his "last season" at Anfield because nobody at the club had talked to him about a new contract.
Those comments were made after he had scored in a 3-0 win at Manchester United - a match he had treated like it was his last at Old Trafford.
Two months later, following a win at Southampton, Salah stated he was "disappointed" at not having been offered a new deal by Liverpool and that he was "probably more out than in".
At the time, the Reds claimed positive talks had been taking place with the player's representative.
However, in January Salah again spoke publicly about his contract situation when he said the two parties were "far away from any progress".
The forward has consistently been linked with a move to Saudi Arabia, with Liverpool rejecting a £150m offer from Al-Ittihad for Salah in 2023.
Saudi Arabia's sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal had said the forward would be "a big prize" and they "would love to have him".
However, Liverpool manager Arne Slot said in January he wanted the player to stay and Salah is "wise enough to make the right decision" over his future.
In announcing Salah's new deal, Liverpool posted a picture of the player - who is nicknamed the 'Egyptian King' - sat on a throne on the Anfield pitch with the caption 'more in than out'.
Analysis - The importance of contracts being two years
BBC Sport senior football reporter Sami Mokbel
There is a growing expectation at Liverpool that captain Virgil van Dijk will join forward Mohamed Salah in signing a new contract.
Following months of discussions it is understood Van Dijk is extremely close to signing what would be a new two-year contract.
There is an importance to both contracts being two years in length.
The first, and most obvious, benefit to Liverpool is they get to keep two of their most important players.
But it also means they can avoid a repeat of the unsettling narrative that has clouded Arne Slot's first season as manager for at least another year.
Liverpool, barring what would be a remarkable capitulation, are set to win their 20th league title - yet the achievement has come against the backdrop of Van Dijk, Salah and defender Trent Alexander-Arnold approaching the end of their contracts.
The club's hopes of retaining Alexander-Arnold have waned in recent weeks, with the right-back in talks with Real Madrid over a free transfer in the summer.
The removal of an “order” button from Tesla’s Chinese website came after Beijing raised tariffs on American imports in response to President Trump’s levies against the country.
Democrats are targeting Donald Trump's weakened standing on the economy — even after the president paused his far-reaching reciprocal tariff policy that reverberated across global markets.
In interviews with more than a dozen Democratic lawmakers, congressional staffers and media strategists, many in the party see a prime opportunity to attack Trump on a key campaign promise they argue he’s failing to deliver — a message likely to be featured prominently in political ads if the economy continues to falter. Some candidates are already hitting tariffs in campaign launch ads, while the party is planning to capitalize on anger over the economy, among other issues, in upcoming town halls.
It's an opportunity for Democrats on the economy, a major point of strength for Trump in his presidential campaign last year, even as they conceded the economic crisis had eased somewhat after the president paused some — but not all — tariffs on most countries. On Thursday afternoon, Trump clarified that the combined tariffs on Chinese goods is now at 145 percent. Most other nations will be subject to the 10 percent baseline tariff the administration levied last week. The markets reacted accordingly, with stocks plummeting at the end of the day.
Now, Democrats are banking on rising panic in worldwide markets and fears of a recession to knock Republicans down.
“We heard for five freaking months going into the last election, people beating up Biden and Harris about inflation, and the price of fucking eggs,” said longtime Democratic pollster Cornell Belcher, who worked on both of Barack Obama’s presidential campaigns. “So why the hell would we make [ads] about tariffs, as opposed to making it about the economy?”
He said Trump is presenting one of the most favorable gateways to Democrats in recent history, imploring Democrats not to squander the week of earned media about a near-global market implosion.
“There is an opportunity here, of historical proportions, given the advantage on the economy writ large that Republicans have had for decades,” he added. “You see Trump underwater on handling the economy and fighting inflation and bringing down costs – that is a major opening and a historic way for Democrats to take away what has been a major positive for Republicans.”
And recent polling backs up that claim that voters are waning on Trump’s economic stewardship. An Economist/YouGov pollof about 1,700 American adultsreleased Wednesday showed Trump’s overall approval rating drop five percentage points from last week, combined with a four percentage-point drop in his handling of the economy. A poll from the Democratic group Navigator Research released Tuesday also showed 55 percent of 1,000 registered voters disapproving of Trump’s handling of the economy, an eight percentage-point swing since the group’s last poll in March. Another recent poll from the liberal group Data For Progress also showed a majority disapprove of Trump’s handling of the economy.
Not every poll showed dramatic changes. In a poll of 1,400 registered voters released Wednesday that was conducted April 3-7 from Quinnipiac, Trump’s handling of the economy and his overall approval rating remained steady or dropped only slightly.
Democrats and their affiliated groups are already blaming Trump for his scattershot tariff rollout as a way to pummel vulnerable Republicans in elections later this year and heading into the midterms.
Hours before Trump announced the tariff pause, the Democratic-aligned super PAC American Bridge released audio of Virginia Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, the GOP gubernatorial nominee, praising Trump’s tariff plan. Democrat Mike Sacks announced his candidacy Wednesday in a nearly two and a half minute ad. It featured an image of the word “tariff” nine times in bold red font along with a crimson-color graphic of a stock market plunging that was superimposed over the face of his opponent, incumbent Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.), widely considered one of the most vulnerable House Republicans next cycle.
Democrats argue the upheaval Trump injected into the economy undercuts the central premise that he campaigned on: that as a businessperson would be best positioned to grow the economy.
“The one thing that American voters want is security and safety. What they don’t want is chaos and uncertainty,” said Alex Jacquez, a former economic adviser to former president Biden who is now chief of policy for Groundwork Collaborative. “I think why you've seen such rapid deterioration on his approvals on the economy and on cost of living, tariffs and trade, is because not a single action that he has taken has been in service of addressing people's number one concern, which is cost of living.”
And that is precisely what has Democratic admakers salivating.
“Keep it simple and keep it tangible and keep it relatable to everyone's lives here,” said veteran media strategist Julian Mulvey, who has cut ads for Bernie Sanders and Kamala Harris. He urged Democrats and affiliated groups to not overcomplicate their messaging by talking about esoteric economic concepts like supply chains and capital markets.
Instead, he referenced the “you break it, you own it” doctrine of politics.
“Trump is sort of charging headlong into breaking the economy and, and he's going to find out when he does,” he said. “Or in the modern vernacular: fuck around and find out.”
The White House, meanwhile, criticized the Democrats’ planned strategy.
“President Trump is the first president in modern American history to take decisive action to finally corner China and restore American Greatness,” White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement. “If Democrats see an opportunity in President Trump and Republicans standing up for everyday Americans and restoring American Greatness, they’re headed for a worse election night than November 5, 2024.”
Several Democratic media strategists acknowledged it’s too early to say what the economy will look like when prime time campaign season hits. But that hasn’t stopped progressive strategists like Chuck Rocha from storyboarding what the anti-Trump attack ads will look like in the coming months.
“The best way to deliver the ad is from one of his voters, a white guy in his 50s who works in a steel mill, works at whatever the place down the street is that says: ‘Look, I don't really care about either party. I voted for Donald Trump because I thought he would change a rigged system,” Rocha said of a hypothetical ad that features someone speaking directly to camera. “But he's even rigging it more, and he's rigging it for himself.”
It’s something that’s caught the attention of lawmakers too, including Steven Horsford (D-Nev.), who won reelection in a key swing state that Trump flipped last year. The representative is one of 26 Democrats that the Republican campaign arm is targeting in the midterms.
“Market manipulation … that’s what happened,” Horsford said on Wednesday. “On the same day that they're screwing America.” Horsford was referring to Trump’s social media post this week where the president proclaimed: “THIS IS A GREAT TIME TO BUY."
Every week political cartoonists throughout the country and across the political spectrum apply their ink-stained skills to capture the foibles, memes, hypocrisies and other head-slapping events in the world of politics. The fruits of these labors are hundreds of cartoons that entertain and enrage readers of all political stripes. Here's an offering of the best of this week's crop, picked fresh off the Toonosphere. Edited by Matt Wuerker.
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