The initial reports made it sound like he was signing the order at that moment. That’s not the case as he was signing some different orders (hence the confusion).
He repeated his threat that tariffs would be imposed on Saturday, Feb 1, citing fentanyl and large trade deficits as the reason.
Importantly, he also said oil would be excluded, according to CNBC. However a Reuters report said he would decide tonight whether to impose the tariffs on oil. Then a Bloomberg report said he would “maybe” decide tonight on oil.
He also said that oil prices would be a factor in his determination.
It’s not clear if there were video cameras in the Oval office, so hopefully we get clarity soon on exactly what was said.
However the initial spike in the market have faded as everyone knows that it’s not a done deal until it’s done (and even after it’s done, the negotiations continue).
I still believe it’s all a bluff and he wants to move-up USMCA negotiations.
However him separating out oil makes it more likely that he follow through with the other tariffs, though it’s tough to get a sense of how it was said without the transcript.