Trump’s tariffs were meant to shrink the trade deficit—but the $106 billion gap just reached its widest since before ‘Liberation Day’

Donald Trump holds a board with "Reciprocal Tariffs" printed on it, followed by a table. (Credit: Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images)

During President Donald Trump’s announcement of “Liberation Day” in April 2025, which would bring with it a raft of aggressive tariffs, Trump claimed the import taxes would slash the U.S.’s stubborn trade deficit, or when a country buys more goods from overseas than it sells.

“They’re a national emergency that threatens our security and our very way of life,” he said at the time. “It’s a very great threat to our country.”