Initial market reactions to U.S. President Donald Trump's July 7 announcement of higher tariffs on more than a dozen countries, including Japan and South Korea (the United States' fifth and seventh largest source of imports), were muted, as were the reactions to his July 9 announcements of tariffs on 7 other countries. This stands in stark contrast to the market rout observed in early April, following Trump's announcement of high tariffs on nearly all of the United States' primary trading partners. In fact, the most significant reaction was a 25% surge in U.S. copper prices following the unanticipated July 8 announcement of a 50% tariff on copper imports. Markets seem to believe that Trump will eventually back down and curb his tariff ambitions, despite his willingness to carry out a risky airstrike on three Iranian nuclear facilities in June.