Donald Trump defends tariffs as markets tank, calls them ‘medicine’: 'Beautiful thing to behold'

US President Donald Trump doubled down on his aggressive reciprocal tariff policy, declaring that massive financial deficits with China, the European Union, and other nations could only be rectified through steep tariffs, which he claimed were already bringing "tens of billions of dollars" into the US.

His remarks, made just before global financial markets plummeted on Monday, intensified fears of an escalating trade war and a looming recession.

In a post on Truth Social, Trump hailed tariffs as "a beautiful thing to behold," asserting that trade surpluses enjoyed by other nations had ballooned under President Joe Biden's administration.

"We are going to reverse it, and reverse it QUICKLY," he said. “Some day people will realize that Tariffs, for the United States of America, are a very beautiful thing!”

The comments came as his aides sought to soothe market concerns by saying that over 50 countries had approached the US to negotiate tariff relief.

Sensex crashed 3,939.68 points in early trade to 71,425.01, and the Nifty tumbled 1,160.8 points to 21,743.65, with midcap and smallcap indices falling over 4% and 5.6%, respectively.

Heavyweight stocks like Tata Steel, Trent, and Infosys saw losses of up to 10%.

Japan’s Nikkei plunged 6% to its lowest level since late 2023, while South Korea’s market dropped 5%.

Taiwan’s main index nosedived nearly 10%, prompting authorities to restrict short-selling, while Chinese blue chips shed 4.4% amid speculation over a potential stimulus from Beijing.

The sell-off rippled through oil markets, with Brent crude falling $1.35 to $64.23 a barrel and US crude diving $1.395 to $60.60 a barrel.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, Trump dismissed concerns over the market rout, saying, "Sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something."

He claimed to have spoken with leaders from Europe, Asia, and others, insisting they were "dying to make a deal" to eliminate trade deficits.

"We’re going to have surpluses, or at worst, break even," he added.