Image from Yahoo (Photo by Brandon Bell / Getty Images)
The stated goal of Trump’s tariffs is to encourage reshoring of manufacturing and boost domestic production by making imports more expensive. In theory, this could incentivise companies to invest in U.S.-based operations to avoid tariffs.
“Already, more than FIVE TRILLION DOLLARS OF INVESTMENT, and rising fast! THIS IS AN ECONOMIC REVOLUTION, AND WE WILL WIN. HANG TOUGH, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic,” boasted Trump. He ties this to his economic revolution aimed at bringing jobs and businesses back to the U.S. (his stated goal). However, there are several reasons to approach this figure with skepticism. After all, it is Trump.
First, let’s consider the timeline. Trump’s tariffs started being implemented in phases – some as early as February 2025, with the most recent ones coming into effect on April 5, 2025. That’s roughly three months since his January 20 inauguration and just a few days since the latest tariff announcement. For $5 trillion in investment to have “already” come into the U.S. due to these tariffs, companies would need to have committed massive sums almost immediately after the policies were announced or enacted. This is a very short timeframe for such a colossal amount of investment to materialise, as investment decisions – especially at this scale – typically involve lengthy planning, negotiations, and due diligence.
To put $5 trillion into perspective, the entire U.S. GDP in 2024 was just under $27 trillion, meaning this alleged investment would represent just over 20% of the country’s annual economic output. Foreign direct investment (FDI) into the U.S. in 2023 was approximately $341 billion. Even if we assume a significant uptick due to Trump’s policies, a jump to $5 trillion in just a few months is an extraordinary claim. Historically, annual FDI flows into the U.S. have never come close to this figure, even during periods of major economic shifts.
There’s also the question of what Trump means by “investment.” Is he referring to actual capital inflows, commitments, or something else? A White House fact sheet from March 31, 2025, mentions that Trump’s policies had secured $3 trillion in private investments, which aligns somewhat with his narrative but still falls short of $5 trillion. This earlier figure, if accurate (which I doubt), might include pledges or planned investments rather than money already invested. Trump’s claim yesterday of $5 trillion could be an exaggeration of this earlier number, or it might include speculative projections rather than confirmed investments. Without specific data breaking down the sources of this $5 trillion – such as which companies, industries, or projects are involved – it’s hard to verify.
Another angle to consider is Trump’s rhetoric and political motivations. He has a history of using hyperbolic figures to tout his policies’ success, as seen in his first term when he claimed tariffs brought in “billions” and made the U.S. “richer than ever before,” despite economists debunking that the revenue came primarily from U.S. businesses and consumers paying higher prices. The $5 trillion figure might be a strategic exaggeration to counter the negative market reactions and reassure the public amid the trade war’s early turbulence. Trump himself acknowledged the challenges, saying, “HANG TOUGH, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic.”
He’s talking rubbish.
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sorry, Mike he has won, already.
I love listening to Donald Dogshit Capone Ponzi Milken Madoff Musky Epstein Trump., for truth, sincerity, fact, honesty, onanistic infatuation, civilised balanced outlook. Oh dear, how Adolf and Josef would just LERV to be here...
You might wonder why Norfolk Island and several other Australian island possessions were hit with a tariff imposition when they don't even export to the US.
All has now been revealed: the Trump administration wanted to prevent Australian exporters from seeking to export steel and aluminium through Norfolk Island and thus dodging the tariff had these locations remained tariff free.
It's a bit like transfer pricing long adopted by the likes of Newscorp and is a technique used by multinational corporations to shift profits out of the countries where they operate and into tax havens. In this case it is transferring the ownership of a commodity.
No doubt some right-wing blogger alerted the Trump administration to that wheeze.
That makes sense, Terry. I find it extraordinary that there is someone in the Trump administration smart enough to work that out.
I see the white house phone lines are "burning" with 50 countries trying to get deals with the Orange Emperor.
Doesnotexiststan, Fantasy Isles, The Democratic Not There Delusional Republic just to name three.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/04/06/tariff-trump-defend-panic-bessent/
It's not just that America is financially bankrupt, but also under T-Rump it is at its apogee of moral bankruptcy.
The huge public demonstrations in the streets of America are a testimony to the peoples disdain for T-Rump's actions since his inauguration, including his many attempts at smashing the 'separation of powers' and provisions of the Constitution (even though its inherently dysfunctional). One can take as gainsaid, these aren't people like T-Rump and his political flunkies and minder / backers that are paranoiacally obsessed with accumulation of money and realty at any cost, they are ordinary people, and representatives of ordinary people that are interested in humanity, fairness and equity. They are shocked by the rapidity and intensity of T-Rumps mad attacks and plunge to kleptocratic autocracy along with his unelected now jibbering equivocating mate Musk.
Whilst ordinary Americans might have a political system that makes it difficult for them to assert moral complicity, it remains sensitive to unfairness imposed by oppression. T-Rump's actions and the response from the rest of the world is already smashing the bourse, and will rapidly smash the lives of ordinary folk. The precipitous flight of 'investment' to and fro is to be expected by the manic gamblers running that 'false' money system - they are shitting bricks that the margins from their febrile activities will vaporize like in the end-games of all confidence tricks.
None of T-Rump's actions will make any tangible difference to America's already crumbled infrastructure and industry, as his other nativist indirect (so called) economic measures work diametrically against rebuilding of infrastructure and industry. T-Rump's life is is saturated by his own such con-job loser schemes.
There is already a huge loss of confidence, and it would seem set to grow. Fewer and fewer will accept his 'Hang tough' rhetoric as they feel the pain of his house-of-cards BS and actions wrought by his ego-fixated glyphs from a bloated Sharpie.
They may not have all voted, but the madding crowd will surely come for him .... hopefully soon. It is likely to be grim, and leaves one asking, "What on earth will take its place?" The saturation of American exceptionalist propaganda is so thorough, let alone the sustainable rebuild of America's infrastructure and industry, how long to rebuild America's mangled psyche?
Clakka, I’ve seen photos of the demonstrations. Absolutely huge numbers. Largest crowds Trump ever achieved.
The crowds at Donny Dogshit's funeral should be huge, No? He'd love that...
" Trump told the reporter: “I think your question is so stupid. I don’t want anything to go down,..."
Of course it's stupid in the warped and twisted Donald reality, anything going "down" is anathema and a sign of defeat and weakness and he fears it greatly. His fragile glass ego could not handle admitting defeat and weakness of any sort. So he derides and blows up at anyone daring to question his mighty Orangeness.
https://www.smh.com.au/world/north-america/your-question-is-so-stupid-trump-reacts-to-market-fallout-after-weekend-of-golf-20250407-p5lpql.html
Um...uh...er...what the?
https://thehill.com/business/5236250-trump-tariffs-economic-recovery/