What ‘Liberation Day’ could mean for US equities, growth

Tomorrow’s tariff announcements are likely to impact the market, though they may not bring certainty

article-image

DT phots1/Shutterstock and Adobe modified by Blockworks

share

This is a segment from the Forward Guidance newsletter. To read full editions, subscribe.


The countdown to President Donald Trump’s “Liberation Day” is on, and the White House remains tight-lipped about what will be in his tariff announcement tomorrow. 

Bulls are optimistic Trump will put an end to the back-and-forth trade policies that have unnerved markets since he took office. The logic goes: No matter what the levies actually are, at least the policies will be set in stone.

I’m less certain tomorrow will bring, well, certainty. Trump yesterday hinted that he would be open to negotiations with foreign nations, so the pattern — in which harsh and sweeping policies are announced, then either quickly walked back or delayed — may continue after all. 

Most of the conversation around tariffs has been about how higher levies will impact consumer prices (i.e. inflation and Fed policy). But the bigger impact of tariffs is arguably that doing business with the US is going to get more expensive, which in turn is bad for growth. 

Trump and his team maintain that short-term pain is to be expected, and they say it’s a small price to pay for bringing manufacturing back to the US. 

Tomorrow’s announcement will likely focus on global reciprocal tariffs, which we’ll be watching. But personally, I’m most interested in seeing if the administration targets copper imports. 

The US currently produces about half the amount of copper it consumes annually, meaning roughly 1 million metric tons are imported. Copper is virtually in everything: wiring, plumbing, motors, medical devices, personal electronics — you get the picture. 

“Dr. Copper” may be a dated economic indicator, but expect to see the metal dominating headlines should tariffs come down the line.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research

article-image

Core’s David Roos says that there won’t be ‘thousands’ of stablecoins launched at once

article-image

Some businesses run on low margins by choice. Others do it because they have no choice.

article-image

BAM, DoubleZero and Alpenglow will drive the new upgrades

article-image

White House officials have until Friday to solidify tariff agreements with most countries

article-image

Sponsored

Fluence is a decentralized marketplace that connects businesses requiring enterprise-grade computing power with professional infrastructure providers