Trump live updates on “Liberation Day” as U.S. braces for new tariffs

Stocks hovered in positive terrain shortly before the close of trading as investors awaited word from President Trump on Wednesday afternoon about new matching tariffs the U.S. is expected to deploy against its trading partners. 

Financial markets have retreated this year amid mounting concerns that Mr. Trump’s economic policies could jar spending by American consumers and businesses, hurting economic growth.

The S&P 500 rose a modest 14 points, or 0.2%, to 5,6476, in afternoon trading, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average and tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.2% and 0.5%, respectively.

For investors, according to Wall Street analysts, key questions regarding the levies the U.S. is expected to unveil on Wednesday — known as “reciprocal” tariffs — include which countries and products will be targeted; what the tariff rates will be; and how long the levies might remain in place.

Mr. Trump announced last week that vehicles and auto parts imported into the U.S. will be subject to a 25% tariff rate.

The auto tariffs are expected to go into effect at midnight, just hours after the latest round of tariff announcements by the president Wednesday afternoon. 

The levies will lead to higher costs for auto manufacturers, and those costs are expected to trickle down to consumers. Some automakers have already announced higher car prices.

—By Megan Cerullo, Sarah Lynch Baldwin

All car manufacturers will be impacted by the new tariffs, according to analysts, but some will be hit much harder than others. 

General Motors is expected to be the most exposed to auto tariffs because it makes just 45% of the vehicles it sells to U.S. customers domestically, whereas Ford is expected to be better positioned to weather the tariffs given 80% of its vehicles are manufactured in the U.S.  

See a breakdown of which cars may be most impacted here.

Most Americans say Mr. Trump has focused too much on tariffs — which they believe will end up raising prices — and not enough on lowering prices, our latest CBS News poll found. 

—By Anthony Salvanto, Jennifer De Pinto, Kabir Khanna, Fred Backus

During the first three months of 2025, the S&P 500 lost 4.6%, marking the worst quarter in two-and-a-half years. The tech-heavy Nasdaq composite ended the first three months of the year with a 10.4% decline, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average shed 2.2% over the same period. 

Investors are anxious over a potentially toxic mix of worsening inflation and a slowing U.S. economy because households are afraid to spend due to a deepening trade war escalated by Mr. Trump.

Read more here.

The president of the United Auto Workers Union has praised Mr. Trump’s move to impose tariffs on vehicles and auto parts imported into the U.S., while also noting that “tariffs aren’t the total solution.”

“Tariffs are a tool in the toolbox to get these companies to do the right thing, and the intent behind it is to bring jobs back here, and, you know, invest in the American workers,” Shawn Fain told CBS News chief Washington correspondent Major Garrett in an interview that aired on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on Sunday.

Read more here.

Economists warn that the Trump administration’s fusillade of tariffs on everything from foreign cars and Chinese-made goods to groceries could raise prices for Americans just as inflation is returning to normal. 

Another widely used product that experts say could see higher costs: housing. The National Association of Home Builders recently estimated that U.S. tariffs on steel, aluminum and lumber imports could add more than $9,000 to the price of a typical home, while also driving up renovation costs. 

Homebuilders also face headwinds from the White House’s crackdown on immigrants, which could lead to a shortage of labor in the construction sector.

“Trade protectionism will increase prices on key material construction inputs,” Fitch Ratings said in an April 1 report. “Foreign born, non-citizen workers represent an overwhelming share of key specialty construction occupations, and immigration restrictions are likely to raise labor costs.”

President Trump has argued that his tariffs could help the government raise over $1 trillion in the next year or so, helping to reduce the national debt and even potentially offset some income taxes. 

But economists are skeptical that these tariffs can bring in as much as Mr. Trump claims, as consumers will likely reduce their spending on foreign goods when prices go up. 

The president’s trillion-dollar estimates are significantly higher than those provided by think tanks and even some of his own officials.

Read more here.