Tariffs, Turbulence, and Trump: The Economist’s Discourse on The US Trade War

Kalina Ishpekova–Bratanova

doi:10.37075/YB.2025.1.08

Authors

Senior Assist. Prof. Dr Kalina Ishpekova–Bratanova Department of Foreign Languages and Applied Linguistics, Faculty of International Economics and Politics, UNWE Author https://orcid.org/0009-0005-0680-5621

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.37075/YB.2025.1.08

Keywords:

Donald Trump, The Economist, Tariffs, Critical discourse analysis

Z13, Z18

Abstract

The major goal of this paper is to analyze how and explain why the Economist discursively constructs the U.S. tariff war initiated by the Trump administration in early 2025. Applying Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA) to commentaries published between February and March 2025, it identifies key factors for the conflict: erratic decision-making, rejection of multilateral trade norms, and the use of tariffs for non-trade objectives. These drivers expose a shift from predictable, rules-based cooperation toward ad hoc, unilateral measures that heighten global uncertainty. The study finds that such policies generate significant economic effects, including market volatility, supply chain disruption, inflationary pressures, and weakened investor confidence. Politically, they erode trust in trade agreements, increase retaliation risks, and strain relations with allies and rivals. Structurally, they undermine global trade institutions and recall the protectionist failures of the 1930s. By refraining from explicit prescriptions, the Economist positions itself as a critical observer, framing the tariff war as a politically driven departure from stable, cooperative trade policy.

References

Beeman, M. (2024). Walking Out: America's New Trade Policy in the Asia-Pacific and Beyond. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press. ISBN: 978-1-931368-74-2

Bhatia, Vijay K. (2016). Critical Genre Analysis: Investigating interdiscursive performance in professional practice. London and New York: Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315690315

Boschiero, Nerina (2023). US Trade Policy, China and the World Trade Organisation. Abingdon, UK: Routledge. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003263623

Bown, C. P. & Lovely, M. E. (2025). Trump's 2025 "Liberation Day" tariffs. Studies in Economics and Finance, 43(1), 224-238. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.5230022 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/SEF-05-2025-0344

Chouliaraki, Lilie & Fairclough, Norman (1999). Discourse in late modernity : rethinking critical discourse analysis. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/9780748610839

Evenett, Simon J (2019). Protectionism, state discrimination, and international business since the onset of the Global Financial Crisis. United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/s42214-019-00021-0

Fairclough, Norman, Mulderrig, Jane, & Wodak, Ruth (2011). Critical Discourse Analysis. Discourse Studies: A multidisciplinary introduction (Ed. van Dijk, T.), pp. 357-378. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446289068.n17

Fairclough, N. (1989). Language and Power. New York: Longman. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315838250

Fairclough, N. (1992). Discourse and Social Change. Cambridge: Polity Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2074659

Fairclough, Norman (1995). Critical Discourse Analysis: The Critical Study of Language. London: Longman. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315834368

Fairclough, Norman (1997). Critical discourse analysis. Discourse as Social Interaction (Ed. van Dijk, T.), pp. 258-284. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203809068.ch1

Flowerdew, John (2017). Critical discourse studies and context *. Identity trouble: Critical discourse and contested identities (Ed. Caldas-Coulthard, C. R. and Iedema, R.), pp. 161-183. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315739342-12

Jacoby, David S. (2018). Trump, Trade, and the End of Globalization. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5040/9798216027768

Kim, Y. G. (2024). 2024 U.S. presidential election: The effects of Trump's tariff policy. Korea Institute for International Economic Policy. DOI: https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4863903

Refk Selmi, Youssef Errami, & Mark E. Wohar (2020). What Trump’s China Tariffs Have Cost U.S. Companies?. Journal of Economic Integration, 35(2), 282-295. DOI: https://doi.org/10.11130/jei.2020.35.2.282

van Dijk, Teun A. (1993). Principles of Critical Discourse Analysis. Discourse & Society, 4(2), 249-283. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0957926593004002006

van Leeuwen, Theo (1993). Genre and Field in Critical Discourse Analysis: A Synopsis. Discourse & Society, 4(2), 193-223. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0957926593004002004

Widdowson, H.G. (1995). Discourse analysis: a critical view. Language and Literature, pp. 157-172. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/096394709500400301

Wodak, Ruth (1999). Critical Discourse Analysis at the End of the 20th Century. Research on Language and Social Interaction, 32(1&2), 181-193. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327973rlsi321&2_22 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/08351813.1999.9683622

Wodak, Ruth (2001). The Discourse-Historical Approach. Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis (Ed. Wodak, R. and Meyer, M.), pp. 63-94. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9780857028020.n4

Wodak, R. (1995). Power, discourse and styles of politics: Approaches to the analysis of language and communication. Language and Power (Ed. Rauch, H. V.), pp. 11-46.

Wodak, R. (1997). Discourse and Politics: The Rhetoric of Politics and Policies. Texts and Practices: Readings in Critical Discourse Analysis (Ed. Caldas-Coulthard, C. R. and Coulthard, M.), pp. 225-245.