'Economic Nuclear Winter': Bill Ackman Urges Trump To Hit 90-Day Pause On Tariffs Amid Market Meltdown

Last Updated:April 07, 2025, 09:29 IST

US President Donald Trump's tariff campaign triggered panic in global markets, with experts warning that the market fallout could escalate into a crash reminiscent of 1987's "Black Monday."

US President Donald Trump and Billionaire investor Bill Ackman | File Image/AP

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman called on US President Donald Trump to hit a 90-day pause on his aggressive tariff move, warning that it could plunge the country into a “self-induced economic nuclear winter."

Ackman warned that the April 9 tariffs, if enforced, could trigger a global economic downturn, with working-class Americans bearing the brunt of the impact.

“The president has an opportunity to call a 90-day time out, negotiate and resolve unfair asymmetric tariff deals, and induce trillions of dollars of new investment in our country," Ackman said in an X post.

The remarks came as Trump’s ‘Liberation Day’ tariff campaign triggered panic in global markets, with CNBC host Jim Cramer warning that the market fallout could escalate into a crash reminiscent of 1987’s “Black Monday."

Ackman suggested that a 90-day pause on tariff implementation would allow the president time to strategically address the nation’s historically unfair global trading position.

“The President has an opportunity on Monday to call a time out and have the time to execute on fixing an unfair tariff system. Alternatively, we are heading for a self-induced, economic nuclear winter, and we should start hunkering down," he said.

Business Leaders Losing Faith On Trump?

Ackman warned that President Trump is losing the confidence of global business leaders, which could have negative consequences for low-income Americans.

“Business is a confidence game. The president is losing the confidence of business leaders around the globe. The consequences for our country and the millions of our citizens who have supported the president — in particular low-income consumers who are already under a huge amount of economic stress — are going to be severely negative," he said.

“This is not what we voted for," he added.

‘Unfair’ Global Tariff System

Ackman, in a detailed post, acknowledged the “unfair" global tariff system and noted how other countries took advantage of the US by protecting their home industries at the expense of millions of American jobs.

However, he further said: “By placing massive and disproportionate tariffs on our friends and our enemies alike and thereby launching a global economic war against the whole world at once, we are in the process of destroying confidence in our country as a trading partner, as a place to do business, and as a market to invest capital."

In another X post, Ackman expressed his respect for President Trump and his achievements but emphasised that he does not view him as infallible, stating firmly that launching sweeping tariffs on April 9 against the entire world—far exceeding the charges imposed on the US—would be a serious mistake.

No Reversal Of Plans On Card

Trump implemented reciprocal tariffs targeting several countries on April 2—34% on China, 26% on India, and 20% on the European Union—triggering turmoil across US and global financial markets. The move wiped out nearly $6 trillion from the value of American stocks in just a few days.

Reacting to the downturn in both American and global markets triggered by the tariffs, the US President on Sunday signalled no intention of reversing his plans, likening the move to taking necessary medicine to fix a problem.

“I don’t want anything to go down, but sometimes you have to take medicine to fix something, and we have been treated so badly by other countries," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew back to Washington after a weekend of golfing in Florida.

He further weighed in on the global financial markets turmoil and said, “What’s going to happen to the markets, I can’t tell you. But our country is much stronger."

He also slammed the previous Joe Biden administration, stating that the US was treated unfairly by other nations under his rule.

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News business 'Economic Nuclear Winter': Bill Ackman Urges Trump To Hit 90-Day Pause On Tariffs Amid Market Meltdown