Trump sent one of his top economists, Stephen Moore, to pitch his tariff plan to 15 of the world's top bond market traders in an attempt to soothe the bond market.

He was basically laughed out of the room.

[Trump's chief economist was criticized as "incoherent" on tariffs after a closed-door meeting with investors]

Stephen Moore, chairman of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, was ridiculed and labeled "incoherent" over tariffs after a closed-door meeting with investors. According to reports, Moore failed to reassure bond investors about the president's tariff plan. In a memo written shortly after Trump was elected president, Moore stated that a strong dollar was key to making other countries bear the burden of increased import taxes. However, the dollar has depreciated by about 8% this year.

The Trump administration has a clear motivation to calm bond investors, who may have forced the president to abandon his extensive "reciprocal tariffs" earlier this month. But according to reports, one of Trump's top economists, who is also the author of the widely circulated tariff blueprint on Wall Street, failed to soothe several major fixed-income traders at last week's White House meeting.

According to the Financial Times, Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Stephen Moore met around 15 representatives from companies such as Citadel, BlackRock, and PGIM at an event organized by Citigroup on Friday. Apparently, some participants believed the meeting did not go well, and sources said Moore's comments on tariffs were "incoherent." The Harvard-educated economist appeared "overwhelmed" in comments to the Financial Times.

"Moore was questioned, and that's when things started to fall apart," a person familiar with the meeting told the Financial Times. "When you face a knowledgeable audience, those talking points are quickly exposed."

Moore is reportedly distancing himself from his 40-page memo titled "User's Guide to Reconstructing the Global Trade System," which was published shortly after Trump's election victory in November during his tenure at Hudson Bay Capital, a $31 billion hedge fund where he worked. Although Moore emphasized that this document was not "advocating policy," it supported Trump's claim that countries other than American consumers would effectively "bear" tariffs, a theory that has been criticized by most economists.

Today, Moore leads the agency providing economic research and analysis for the administration. White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in a statement: "The president's decisions are guided solely by the best interests of the American people."

The Council of Economic Advisers has not yet responded to Fortune magazine's request for comment.

The market currently appears to be experiencing a period of uneasy calm, with the S&P 500 index rising more than 10% since April 8. At that time, the index rose above the 5000-point threshold for the first time in nearly 12 months.

Source: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1831055050079241/

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