A Global Economy Jolted by an Oil Shock Now Gets a Tariff Reminder

We’ve all been down this road before.

President Trump issues a blitz of punitive tariffs on allies and rivals, straining trade, rattling bond markets, raising prices and injecting more uncertainty into the global economy.

The difference now is that the United States is at war with Iran, key trade and energy routes in the Persian Gulf region are blocked and the global oil price is near $100 a barrel. When Mr. Trump unveiled his original cold blanket of tariffs, on April 2, 2025, oil had been around $70 a barrel.

“These new trade tensions come at a moment in which the global economy, due to higher energy prices, is in a weaker spot than on Liberation Day last year,” said Carsten Brzeski, an economist at the Dutch multinational bank ING, referring to the day President Trump announced the specific rates.

The new import taxes on more than 80 countries, including members of the European Union, are Mr. Trump’s latest bid to reimpose tariffs after the U.S. Supreme Court struck down many of his previous levies in February.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/25/business/economy/trump-tariffs-iran-war-inflation.html