Trump's 104% Chinese tariffs took effect early morning, triggering another Asian market selloff. By mid-morning, China announced retaliatory tariffs up to 84% on American goods, while the EU approved 25% countermeasures.
Trump made vulgar comments about foreign leaders "kissing his ass" to secure trade deals, stoking further tensions. European markets suffered heavily, with Milan closing down 2.75%.
In a dramatic evening reversal, Trump announced a 90-day pause on reciprocal tariffs for most countries while simultaneously increasing China's rate to 125%. He admitted "people were a bit scared," triggering a historic Wall Street rebound—Nasdaq closed up 12.16%, with Apple gaining 12% and Tesla 22.7%.
In domestic news, Italy's Supreme Court rejected the Interior Ministry's appeal, ruling that ID cards should use the generic term "parents" rather than "father" and "mother." King Charles III and Queen Camilla addressed the Italian Parliament and met with Pope Francis.