Trump Taco: US President responds to 'TACO' and 'Trump Always Chickens Out' acronym - what does it mean?
TACO trade is as an acronym that stands for “Trump Always Chickens Out.”
The term is meant to describe the president's habit of threatening to impose tariffs on countries and then backing out at the last moment, or reducing the tariffs rates. US President Donald Trump has pushed back on his tariffs reversals after a reporter asked about "Taco," an acronym which stands for "Trump Always Chickens Out," that's reportedly being used by Wall Street traders.
On Wednesday Trump said: “I’ve never heard that. You mean because I reduced China from 145 percent that I set down to 100, and then down to another number, and I said you have to open up your whole country?.
“And because I gave the European Union a 50 percent tariff and they called up and said, ‘Please let’s meet right now.’ You call that chickening out?”.
Trump has repeatedly threatened tariffs in recent months, only to pull back days later. He initially threatened tariffs on Mexico and Canada in early February but ultimately delayed imposing them. More recently, he said last week he would impose a 50 percent tariff on the European Union starting in June. But days later, he announced he would delay those tariffs until July 9 while the two sides held talks.
With the TACO trade, investors have started to expect the president to ultimately back off some of his most significant threats. Trump responded by criticising the reporter's "nasty" question and saying that his actions are "negotiations".