04-04-2025
Veteran fund manager calls Trump's tariffs ‘illegal'
The crypto market is feeling the impact, as its $2.6 trillion market cap has lost 5.48% in 24 hours. Bitcoin sank to $81,684.76, down 6.56% weekly, as broader financial markets underwent a coordinated selloff.
Ethereum has lost over 12% weekly, and Solana has fallen more than 18%. The decline comes in the storm of macroeconomic pressure unleashed by President Trump's newly implemented "reciprocal" tariffs, which have fueled widespread risk aversion across asset classes.
From Wall Street to the crypto market, all indicators show a dump. The S&P 500 fell 4.5%, the NASDAQ fell 5.5%, and the Russell 2000 is headed for bear market territory. Gold, usually a safe bet, dropped 0.5%. VIX, a volatility index by MarketWatch, stands at 29, a sign of excessive fear. Oil prices crashed 6%, and the U.S. dollar index (DXY) fell under 101.5.
The current market fiasco has prompted Peter Schiff, a veteran fund manager known for disliking Bitcoin, to post on X on April 3, calling Trump's tariff illegal.
He said, "Trump's tariffs are illegal. Congress delegated the President the power to impose reciprocal tariffs. However, Trump's tariffs are reciprocal in name only. They are based on a bogus formula that attributes any nation's trade surplus to tariffs, even if tariffs are low or nonexistent."
When a follower asked if he opposed the tariffs because they hurt gold, Schiff replied, "They hurt the country. They will help gold." Schiff has been a big proponent of gold and believes the Trump tariffs will help gold in the long run.
Ironically, gold was not spared the panic-fueled sell-off. At the time of writing, gold fell more than 3%, below $3,060 per ounce on Thursday, following a fleeting peak above $3,160.
During the 2018–2019 U.S.-China Tariff War, gold prices dropped from $1,350/oz in April to $1,175/oz in August, a loss of over 12%, according to International Banker.
Some crypto advocates contend that in the aftermath, Bitcoin and stablecoins — both overseas and unpegged to the U.S. dollar — may be the long-term victors, given the U.S. dollar is seeing its worst start to the year in three decades.
