Trump Tariffs

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The anchoring effect is one of the sneakiest tools companies use to make us spend money.

Here’s how it works. Let’s say we’re shopping for a smartphone manufactured by Dapple, which has just released two new models: a $1,200 model with a big screen and a $900 one that is more compact. The more expensive smartphone will serve as the “anchor” by which we make comparisons, so the $900 model will appear to be value for money — even if it is costly in absolute terms. But we’re likely to feel good about choosing it because we’ve “saved” $300 on our purchase.

This scenario seems to be what’s happening with the U.S-Japan trade agreement freshly announced late Tuesday stateside. U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington would gain access to Japan’s markets for rice and cars — which had been sticking points during negotiations — while the latter would see 15% tariffs on its exports to America.

At first glance, that doesn’t sound too positive for Japan. But investors celebrated the news — the Nikkei 225 jumped 3.8% at 1:45 a.m. ET. After all, a 15% tariff rate is a big improvement from the 25% tariff Trump slapped on Tokyo earlier this month. Furthermore, Japanese auto exports to the U.S. — which made up 28.3% of all shipments in 2024 — will face a tariff of 15%, lower than the universal 25% other countries are subject to.

As Brian Jacobsen, chief economist at Annex Wealth Management, said, “It’s a sign of the times that markets would cheer 15% tariffs. A year ago, that level of tariffs would be shocking. Today, we breathe a sigh of relief.” That, in essence, is the anchoring effect at play.