More tariff chaos: Donald Trump pauses tariffs for most countries at the last minute but jacks them up to 125% against China, ‘effective immediately,’ because of their ‘lack of respect’

The ongoing US tariff catastrophe that has made new PC hardware purchases (and a lot more) such an absolute nightmare got even more confusing earlier today as US president Donald Trump announced that he’s pausing the imposition of a new round of tariffs for 90 days—except for China, for which he’s increased tariffs to 125%, “effective immediately.”

“Based on the lack of respect that China has shown to the World’s Markets, I am hereby raising the Tariff charged to China by the United States of America to 125%, effective immediately,” Trump said in a message posted on his Truth Social network.

“At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realize that the days of ripping off the U.S.A., and other Countries, is no longer sustainable or acceptable.

“Conversely, and based on the fact that more than 75 Countries have called Representatives of the United States, including the Departments of Commerce, Treasury, and the USTR, to negotiate a solution to the subjects being discussed relative to Trade, Trade Barriers, Tariffs, Currency Manipulation, and Non Monetary Tariffs, and that these Countries have not, at my strong suggestion, retaliated in any way, shape, or form against the United States, I have authorized a 90 day PAUSE, and a substantially lowered Reciprocal Tariff during this period, of 10%, also effective immediately.”

The message was later shared on the official White House X feed:

This matters to us as PC gamers because the Trump-imposed tariffs have thrown the hardware market into absolute chaos. The Entertainment Software Association said in February that Trump’s tariffs “would negatively impact hundreds of millions of Americans,” and I’m starting to think that was an understatement because just look at this mess:

• Razer has pulled the pricing and pre-order pages for its new Blade laptops and I think it’s pretty obvious what’s happening here
• This estimate that iPhones would cost $3,500 if made in the US has me terrified of tariffs and the concept of a mid-range gaming laptop costing $5,000 and high-end models hitting nearly $15,000
• Framework is ‘temporarily pausing US sales’ on some of its laptops due to Trump’s tariffs: ‘At a 10% tariff, we would have to sell the lowest-end SKUs at a loss’
• Major Japanese studios and publishers were having a great time in 2025, right up until the weekend because of the (you guessed it) ‘insultingly dumb’ US tariffs
• Board game publishers lament the devastating impact of new US tariffs on the tabletop industry: ‘There is no silver lining. It is a lose-lose-lose situation for everyone involved’
• Nintendo has delayed Switch 2 pre-orders in the US ‘to assess the potential impact of tariffs’ and it feels like a straight warning of the hardware price rises to come

And that’s all just within the past week.

News of the pause sparked a surge in markets: Dow Jones, Nasdaq, and S&P 500 all rose sharply, great news for Trump administration insiders who had a heads-up on the move. Oh, and they did have a heads-up on it, for the record, about four hours before the “pause” announcement went up.

The markets have rebounded somewhat in the immediate wake of the announcement, for now, but the walkback doesn’t mean much for the long term when no one knows what to really believe. Whether you’re a Wall Street investor or just someone trying to upgrade their gaming PC, all you’re left with today is more uncertainty and instability, the hallmark of Trump’s second term. As the CBC put it, “Is Canada included in the new tariff rate announced today? No one knows.”

(It’s starting to look like maybe not, though. Which kind of makes the point, right?)

Trump’s capricious volatility leaves manufacturers utterly unable to plan for anything, because it leaves so many questions unanswered. What happens when the 90 days are up? What happens if, in the meantime, the EU, Canada, or anyone else does a new trade deal with China that angers Trump? What happens if China decides there’s only one way this can end?

The net result for now is, well, chaos, pure, ongoing, and all-encompassing, and a reasonable assumption of so much more of it to come in the foreseeable future. As PC Gamer’s Dave James put it, tariffs “will affect pricing,” but the erratic back and forth of the US president, which the rest of the US government is apparently unable to do anything about, makes it impossible to say how they’ll affect pricing, and that leaves all of us in a spot where all we can do is roll the dice and hope for the best—not a good spot to be in at all.