On tariffs, Trump is an open book
There is method to the US president’s apparent madness, and those seeking to understand need look no further than their local bookshop
In an interview aired on Fox News in mid-March, US President Donald Trump declared to host Laura Ingraham that 2 April would be what he calls “Liberation Day”, the day on which he was scheduled to impose reciprocal tariffs on many of America’s trading partners, saying: “We have been ripped off by every country in the world, friend and foe.” Trump’s plan involves imposing tariffs on goods imported into the US that are equal to those imposed by the originating countries on US exports. Coming in addition to a variety of new tariffs imposed on major trading partners such as China, Canada and Mexico—along with general tariffs on imports of steel and aluminium—the reciprocal tariffs make up a majo
Also in this section
16 December 2025
The December 2025/January 2026 issue of Petroleum Economist is out now!
16 December 2025
Abdullah Aljarboua serves as a senior fellow in the energy macro & microeconomics programme at KAPSARC. His work spans macroeconomics, energy-economic modelling, large-scale optimisation and advanced computational techniques for modelling complex energy policy dynamics. Here he speaks with Petroleum Economist about the Gulf region’s role in shaping the energy landscape over the coming decades
16 December 2025
The 25th WPC Energy Congress, taking place in Riyadh in April 2026 brings together global leaders, scientists, policymakers and innovators at a pivotal moment in the world’s energy evolution.
15 December 2025
As contradictory as it might seem, US oil output has continued to grow over the last several years, even as drilling in the shale plays has maintained a slow decline. This improbable dichotomy is a testimony to the industry’s technological prowess






