Viral false claim about Trump ‘considering 90-day pause in tariffs’ sends market on rollercoaster ride

WASHINGTON, DC: A fake news claiming President Donald Trump was considering pausing tariffs for 90 days sent stock markets soaring on Monday, April 7 morning, after it went viral on the social media platform X, reported Mediaite.

However, the euphoria did not last long as the White House soon denied the claim, making the market tumble again.

Stock markets have been reeling since the incumbent announced 'reciprocal' tariffs on almost 90 nations across the globe on April 2, Wednesday, evaporating trillions of dollars. As per the publication, Monday continued a brutal three-day sell-off across the board.

S&P 500 was down 4% on the day and nearly 13% since Thursday, marking its steepest drop since the 2008 financial crisis. The Dow dropped 1,363 points, following two consecutive 1,500-point collapses. The NASDAQ went down another 4%, bringing its losses from recent highs to 26%.

The viral tweet that made the market spiral

An account with the username Hammer Capitol reportedly posted on X on Monday morning: "HASSETT: TRUMP IS CONSIDERING A 90-DAY PAUSE IN TARIFFS FOR ALL COUNTRIES EXCEPT CHINA." The tweet was shared by the account named Walter Bloomberg, which boasts over 844K followers.

Since the misinformation was attributed to White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett, many believed it to be true, and the news soon went viral. Within minutes, the fake claim made its way to the news channel CNBC.

As a result, markets showed a jubilant spike as much as 8% in seconds. However, the climb was only momentary as the White House promptly informed CNBC that the claim was fake. This made the market crash by 3.5%.

While the original post on X has been deleted, the claim is still making rounds on the platform after being debunked.

Prior to the fake news becoming viral, Hassett had appeared on 'Fox & Friends' where co-host Brian Kilmeade asked him on the subject of a probable 90-day pause of tariffs.

"I think the president is gonna decide what the president is going to decide… even if you think there will be some negative effect from the trade side, that’s still a small share of GDP," Hassett responded at the time.

Internet stunned by stock market swings

Netizens reacting to the stock market spiralling after the false claim went viral, and again crashing after the White House debunked the claim, described the whole situation as "insane". The following tweets demonstrate the predominant takes.

"This is insane manipulation. Will be interesting to see who got 'lucky' and made the correct play," wrote a user.

"This is BLEEPING NUTS!" shared another.

"This is the most entertaining stock event ever. There should be a movie and it should be a comedy," a user remarked.

"This is a circus," quipped another.

"Volatility has entered the chat," wrote a user.

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.