President Donald Trump’s sweeping new tariffs are drawing blistering criticism from economists and market analysts, with CNBC’s Steve Liesman calling the move a “self-inflicted catastrophe” that could plunge the country into recession. Appearing on MSNBC’s All In with Chris Hayes Friday night, Liesman warned that the markets are reacting to a grim economic outlook sparked by Trump’s latest trade actions. “If you take a step back, what’s really happening here, Chris, is the market is pricing in the high probability of a recession,” Liesman said. “That’s really what this is all about right now.” On Wednesday, Trump announced a new tariff structure that imposes a 10% baseline tariff on nearly all imported goods. Certain countries were hit with significantly higher rates, and a 25% tariff was placed on all automobile imports, igniting fears of a full-blown trade war. The markets reacted quickly: the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped nearly 4,000 points over two days, and JPMorgan analysts now place the odds of a tariff-induced recession at 60%. “The Titanic hit an iceberg by accident,” Liesman said. “This is the equivalent of steering the Titanic toward the iceberg.” He added that the market is not anticipating any long-term economic benefit from the tariffs: “The market prices in future values, and that’s not happening. What’s not happening is the market pricing in some form of ‘golden age’ where manufacturing comes back to America.” Liesman pointed out that between $7 trillion and $10 trillion in stock market value has been lost since Trump took office in January. Adding to the unease, Liesman noted that many investors had hoped Trump’s aides would act as a moderating force on policy — a hope he now believes is unfounded. “Well, that’s gone,” he said. “The adults have left the room, is maybe one way to put it.” (YWN World Headquarters – NYC)