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Trump’s Duty-Free AI Boom Zips Past the Sluggish Global Economy

FacebookXLinkedInEmailLinkGiftFacebookXLinkedInEmailLinkGiftGift this articleContact us:Provide news feedback or report an errorConfidential tip?Send a tip to our reportersSite feedback:Take our SurveyNew WindowFacebookXLinkedInEmailLinkGiftBy Shawn DonnanOctober 20, 2025 at 11:24 AM UTCBookmarkSaveLock This article is for subscribers only.

One persistent theme at last week’s International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings was the resilience of the global economy to the Trump tariff shock. For which there are myriad explanations, from the delayed pass-through in prices to a growing list of carveouts to the now infamous TACO market meme.

The reality, reinforced by the IMF in its latest World Economic Outlook, is that the negative effects of tariffs are there and plain to see if you know where to look. Just about every economy in the world is growing slower than it would otherwise have been. The drag of uncertainty on investment is real, meaning weaker expansions will persist for years to come.

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