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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-593456" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108097320-1738700553733-gettyimages-2195560127-_90a7946_arseoghy.jpeg 1920w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">David Sacks, U.S. President Donald Trump’s “AI and Crypto Czar”, speaks to President Trump as he signs a series of executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House on Jan. 23, 2025 in Washington, DC. Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The Trump-tech alliance is showing its first real sign of distress. And it’s because of crypto.



President Donald Trump counted on crypto execs and investors for a hefty portion of his 2024 campaign funds. He promised to reward them handsomely if elected by slashing regulations and by turning the U.S. into “the crypto capital of the planet and the bitcoin superpower of the world.”



The president got off to a quick start, signing an executive order calling for the establishment of a working group on digital assets and pardoning Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht. The SEC also dropped its years-long probe into Coinbase.



While those moves were lauded by the most vocal techies who backed Trump’s candidacy, over the weekend the president took it a step too far in their view. In a post on Truth Social on Sunday, Trump announced the creation of a strategic crypto reserve for the U.S. that would include not just bitcoin but several other digital currencies — ether, XRP,  Solana’s SOL token and Cardano’s ADA.



For the most part, Trump’s crypto backers all wanted a strategic bitcoin reserve. Such a move would entail using cash to buy bitcoin, which is widely viewed by crypto enthusiasts as a smart way to deploy capital into a decentralized currency that’s an alternative to hard money. As Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong wrote on X, bitcoin offers a “clear story as successor to gold.”



By going well beyond bitcoin, the critics say, Trump would be using U.S. taxpayer money to buy much riskier assets that have unproven value and have the potential to bolster the net worth of a select few investors who own the coins. That’s all the more problematic to those who want to axe government spending by trillions of dollars, in support of Elon Musk’s cost-cutting mission at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency.



“Taxation is theft,” wrote Joe Lonsdale, founder of venture firm 8VC and a vocal Trump supporter, in a post on X. “It should be kept to a minimum. It’s wrong to steal my money for grift on the left; it’s also wrong to tax me for crypto bro schemes.”



David Sacks, the venture capitalist who was tapped by Trump to be the “White House AI and crypto czar,” took exception to Lonsdale’s comment, suggesting it’s premature to jump to any conclusions. Sacks and Lonsdale are part of the same conservative circle in the tech world, with Musk and Peter Thiel at the center.



“Nobody announced a tax or a spending program,” Sacks wrote, in response to Lonsdale’s post. “Maybe you should wait to find out what’s actually being proposed.”



The White House didn’t respond to a request for comment.



But Lonsdale was far from alone.



Naval Ravikant, a longtime tech investor and early crypto evangelist, wrote after the announcement that, “The US taxpayer should not be exit liquidity for cryptocurrencies that are decentralized in name only.” And Vinny Lingham, creator of blockchain startup Civic and a big crypto influencer, wrote, “Call me old fashioned but I don’t think the government should be pumping our crypto bags with taxpayer money while we are running a near $2trn deficit.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-agreement-across-the-industry"><a></a>Agreement across the industry</h2>



A major Trump supporter and big name in crypto joined the chorus on Monday. Billionaire bitcoin investor Tyler Winklevoss, who wrote just before the November election that you should vote for Trump “if you care about the future of crypto, free speech, justice, liberty, and democracy,” came out against the president’s crypto reserve plan.



“I have nothing against XRP, SOL, or ADA but I do not think they are suitable for a Strategic Reserve,” Winklevoss wrote. “Only one digital asset in the world right now meets the bar and that digital asset is bitcoin.”



David Marcus, the former head of Facebook’s failed crypto project, suggested that the majority of his peers in the crypto community have the same view.



“Most—if not all—of the non-conflicted industry leaders are agreeing about this,” Marcus wrote, in reposting Winklevoss’ comment.



Marcus, who’s now CEO of payments infrastructure startup Lightspark, declared in July that he was “crossing the Rubicon” and shifting his support to Trump and away from Democrats.



Anthony Pompliano, a loud pro-Trump voice in crypto investing, committed over 1,500 words in his newsletter on Monday to the topic. He says Trump is willing to propose an agenda of buying risky tokens on behalf of the U.S. because the wrong people got to him.



“We watched crypto projects, lobbyists, and special interest groups co-opt the President of the United States,” Pompliano wrote. “They told the President that any crypto-related reserve should hold tokens that were ‘made in America.’ This pitch was the perfect trap for a President who ran on the America First agenda.”



Some of the wrath online was directed specifically at Sacks, who touted and backed various cryptocurrencies as a VC prior to joining the Trump administration, and whose firm, Craft Ventures, is an investor in crypto index fund manager Bitwise.



Sacks wrote in a post on X that he sold all of his crypto, including bitcoin, ether and SOL, before taking on his new role and “will provide an update at the end of the ethics process.”



By late afternoon Monday, crypto prices had staged a dramatic reversal from their weekend rally that followed Trump’s announcement. Bitcoin fell about 9%, while ether slid 15%. XRP and SOL dropped even more.



The slide appeared tied to President Trump’s confirmation of forthcoming tariffs, which hammered risky assets across the board and sent the Nasdaq down almost 3% at the close of trading.



There were some voices in crypto who were less willing to publicly slam Trump’s reserve plan.



Michael Saylor, the chairman of Strategy, which has effectively emerged as a bitcoin proxy due to its roughly $43 billion stash, told CNBC on Monday that he wasn’t surprised about Trump’s decision to include additional cryptocurrencies.



“There’s no way to interpret this other than this is bullish for bitcoin and bullish for the entire U.S. crypto industry,” Saylor said. “I believe the best thing for the country is to move forward with an enlightened progressive policy toward digital assets.”



Jonathan Jachym,&nbsp;global head of policy and government relations&nbsp;at Kraken, told CNBC that the crypto exchange is “encouraged to see that announcement” and that it shows the president is “staying true to commitments.”



Even among the skeptics, Trump doesn’t appear to be losing broader support for his agenda just because of this one announcement. Backers like Lonsdale have been quick to post about other matters, complimenting actions taken by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Trump for pressuring Mexican drug cartels.



But coming just six weeks into Trump’s second administration, the reaction shows how quickly the outrage machine can activate when a proposal touches the nerve of a critical group of supporters. The debate adds interest to Trump’s first White House Crypto Summit on Friday, when investors will eagerly be awaiting more details.



As Sacks wrote on March 2, in his first post about the announcement of the strategic reserve, “More to come at the Summit.”

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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="553" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-820x553.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-593453" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-820x553.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-300x202.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-133x90.jpeg 133w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-768x518.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-1536x1036.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108068402-17326458972024-11-26t182452z_1141394992_rc2vcba0jnfu_rtrmadp_0_mexico-usa-scaled.jpeg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum speaks after reading a letter to be sent to U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, warning that tariffs would cause inflation and job losses in both countries, at National Palace in Mexico City, Mexico, November 26, 2024.  Presidencia De Mexico | Via Reuters</figcaption></figure>



President Donald Trump went forward with sweeping&nbsp;tariffs&nbsp;at midnight on goods imported from&nbsp;Canada&nbsp;and&nbsp;Mexico, while doubling down on punitive duties on China.



Just now Mexico’s president said retaliatory tariffs are coming Sunday.



Starting Tuesday, 25% tariffs on two U.S. neighbors — Canada and Mexico — went into effect. The president also imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports, doubling the 10% duty he had slapped on Beijing in early February.



Economists have warned that the president’s aggressive moves could cause negative consequences globally, including triggering inflation that could hurt consumers. The stock market suffered a dramatic sell-off after Trump’s announcement. The S&amp;P 500 dropped 1.8%, its worst day since December, falling into negative territory for the year. Futures were under pressure yet again Tuesday.

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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-593435" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/108109641-1740979749112-gettyimages-2196266016-2L7A1535.jpeg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The new Bitcoin token is photographed on U.S. $100 bills. Sopa Images | Lightrocket | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The price of bitcoin failed to recover the $85,000 level – where it traded before President Donald Trump’s announcement of a U.S. crypto reserve sent it soaring – after a sell-off driven by tariff concerns knocked it down.



Bitcoin was last lower by 2% on Tuesday at $83,508.78, according to Coin Metrics, and off its all-time high by 23%.



Ripple-related XRP and Cardano’s ADA, two of the smaller cap coins mentioned in Trump’s surprise announcement, were still holding onto some of their gains from the rally. Solana’s SOL token also fully reversed its gain.



Shares of Coinbase, Robinhood and Strategy, formerly known as MicroStrategy, were all lower in premarket trading.



Risk assets including cryptocurrencies suffered steep declines on Monday as traders grappled with concerns that proposed tariffs were on track to take effect. That overshadowed the exuberance around Trump’s so named U.S. “strategic crypto reserve,” which some traders had hoped would pull bitcoin out of a slump. After reaching its record in January, it posted its worst month since 2022 in February.



Investors and analysts warn that economic uncertainty could keep its hold on bitcoin throughout March, with the crypto industry absent a specific catalyst. With the idea of a U.S. reserve holding crypto largely priced in, regulatory clarity through clear legislation may be the more likely catalyst to jump start prices in a meaningful way.



“The lack of information on the amount of crypto the U.S. government will buy, and how the purchase will be funded, coupled with fears of a market retreat if expectation does not meet reality, means that the likelihood of high volatility in the crypto markets will continue,” said Deutsche Bank analyst Marion Laboure said in a note Tuesday.



Investors this week will keep an eye on the inaugural White House Crypto Summit, which is scheduled to take place this Friday, for updates on the details of the reserve, as well as the administration’s plans to support the industry.



—CNBC’s Michael Bloom contributed reporting

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China’s factory activity expanded at its fastest pace in three months to 50.8 in February, a private-sector survey showed on Monday, as millions of migrant workers returned to work after an extended Lunar New Year holiday.



The seasonally adjusted Caixin/S&amp;P Global manufacturing purchasing managers’ index beat Reuters poll forecast of 50.3, also accelerating from 50.1 in January and 50.5 last December.



The private-sector manufacturing PMI has stayed above the 50 threshold that separates expansion from contraction since last October.



This private survey reading on Monday followed the official manufacturing PMI released on Saturday, which also showed that China’s February factory activity expanded at its fastest pace since November.



The official PMI rose to 50.2 in February from 49.1 in January, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The non-manufacturing PMI, which includes services and construction, also climbed to 50.4 from 50.2 in January.



The figures came as economists flagged that fresh U.S. tariffs could pressure the country’s manufacturing activity — which accounted for a quarter of China’s GDP last year — and dent the role of exports as a key driver of growth this year.



In February, new export orders grew at the fastest rate since last April, according to the Monday survey, as “demand strengthened from foreign clients.”



The stronger external demand for Chinese manufactured goods could be due to U.S. importers continuing to front-run tariffs in anticipation of even higher levies, Zichun, Huang, China economist at Capital Economics, said in a note.



U.S. President Donald Trump last week announced to impose additional 10% tariffs on Chinese goods — on top of the 10% he levied on China on Feb. 4. Trump had threated 60% tariffs on China on his campaign trail.



The additional tariffs are scheduled to take effect on March 4, coinciding with a high-profile annual gathering in Beijing where Chinese authorities are expected to unveil economic targets for 2025 and fresh policy support.



While attention is now on potential countermeasures from Beijing, investors also await more government details on a broad stimulus plan to prop up the slowing economy, including ramped-up fiscal spending to boost domestic demand and fend off persistent disinflationary pressures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-patchy-recovery"><a></a>Patchy recovery</h2>



At the upcoming parliamentary meetings, China’s leadership is expected to acknowledge a significant softening in domestic demand while revealing highly anticipated details on fiscal stimulus aimed at shoring up growth in the face of heightened U.S. trade tensions.



While a combination of fiscal support and “tariff front-running” helped China’s economy regain some momentum in February, the overall growth in this quarter is likely to slow, Capital Economics’ Huang said.



“Unless the leadership unveil greater-than-expected stimulus at the National People’s Congress, it is hard to see how a slowdown can be avoided this year,” Huang said.



Plagued by lackluster domestic consumption, output prices at factories have remained under pressure, particularly consumer and investment goods that experienced sharper price declines, according to the Monday survey.



Squeezing that profit margin further, costs for copper and certain chemical products have edged higher, the survey showed.



Employment in the manufacturing sector also slumped to a near five-year low, as manufacturers continued to prioritize cost reductions, particularly among consumer goods producers.

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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="461" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F-820x461.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-591874" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F-820x461.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F-1536x864.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/108104755-1740023049512-gettyimages-1212971284-AFP_1RK86F.jpeg 1600w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump. Dan Kitwoodnicholas Kamm | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



China’s Ministry of Commerce said Friday that it “firmly opposes” U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest threat to ramp up tariffs on Chinese goods and vowed retaliation, if necessary.



“If the U.S. insists on its own way, China will take all necessary countermeasures to defend its legitimate rights and interests,” a Ministry of Commerce spokesperson said in a statement, translated by CNBC.



“We urge the U.S. side to not repeat its own mistakes, and to return as soon as possible to the right track of properly resolving conflicts through dialogue on equal footing.”



The statement followed Trump’s Thursday announcement that the U.S. would impose an additional 10% duty on Chinese imports on March 4, which coincides with the start of China’s annual parliamentary meetings.



The new tariffs would be on top of the 10% further tariffs that Trump levied on China on Feb. 4.



Trump announced the two rounds of China duties were being imposed in response to the Asian country’s role in the fentanyl trade. The addictive drug, precursors to which are mostly produced in China and Mexico, has led to tens of thousands of overdose deaths each year in the U.S.



“In the short term, China’s response will likely include raising tariffs on select U.S. imports, adding more American firms to its unreliable entity list, and potentially further tightening export controls on critical minerals,” Neil Thomas, a fellow on Chinese politics at the Asia Society, said by email.



He noted he nevertheless expects Beijing’s retaliation will remain “measured,” as Chinese President Xi Jinping has an incentive to meet with his American counterpart and initiate negotiations to avoid measures that put greater pressure on already sluggish economic growth.



China’s exports have been a rare bright spot in an otherwise slowing economy. The U.S. is China’s largest trading partner on a single-country basis.



While Beijing may maintain a “restrained” stance, upcoming moves will likely target industries that matter the most to Trump supporters, said Alfredo Montufar-Helu, head of the China Center at The Conference Board.



China would prefer to leave some room for further negotiations as it hopes to avoid even higher import tariffs and other “corrective” measures by Washington, he said.



After the first round of tariffs earlier this month, China’s retaliatory measures included raising duties on certain U.S. energy imports and putting two U.S. companies on an unreliable entities list that could restrict their ability to do business in the Asian country.



China has also increased controls on exports of critical minerals that the U.S. needs.



“The sharpest arrow that China has in its quiver would be to restrict U.S. access to critical minerals that can’t readily be sourced elsewhere,” said Stephen Olson, a visiting senior fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies and a former U.S. trade negotiator.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-stronger-tone"><a></a>A stronger tone</h2>



Despite the lack of specifics, the Ministry of Commerce statement on Friday struck a stronger tone than the country’s response to the initial 10% duties earlier this month.



The ministry defended China’s drug control efforts and called the latest tariff threat — on grounds of illegal fentanyl flows — as “purely shifting the blame” without helping the U.S. solve its own drug problems. It also denounced the additional levies for “adding to the burdens on American businesses and consumers and disrupting the global supply chain.”



The latest communique “sends a clear message that the Chinese government is ready to respond in defense of national interests, and they won’t ‘bend the knee,’” said Montufar-Helu.



In contrast, the ministry’s statement dated Feb. 2 urged Washington to manage fentanyl issues “objectively and rationally” while cautioning the tariffs could damage normal China-U.S. economic and trade relations.



China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also toughened its tone in a response to the tariffs Friday. The U.S. act of “pressuring, coercing and threatening” China with tariffs will only backfire, spokesperson Lin Jian said in Chinese comments reported by state media and translated by CNBC.



Trump’s announcement of extra tariffs will “push China into a position of assuming that a deal may not be possible or may not be achievable in the near term,” Deborah Elms, head of trade policy at the Hinrich Foundation, told CNBC.



“That leaves Beijing with two options:&nbsp;either roll out continued measured responses in the hope of avoiding further escalation and maybe even rolling back existing measures; or going much bigger,” she added, as the previous “modest measures weren’t enough and the threat for future escalation wasn’t taken seriously enough.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>More tariffs likely</h2>



At the start of his second term, Trump ordered his administration to investigate Beijing’s compliance with a trade deal struck during his first presidency in 2020. The final result of the assessment will be delivered to Trump by April 1.



That could set the stage for further actions of what Trump called “reciprocal tariffs,” raising duties on various countries including China to match their existing levies on U.S. imports.



In a social media post Thursday, the U.S. president confirmed that “The April Second Reciprocal Tariff date will remain in full force and effect.”

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