From Europe to Pharma: Tariffs as a Volatility Engine

[mendez]

Additional tariff tools could widen the risk net in 2026. Retaliatory duties tied to digital services taxes in Europe, steep pharmaceutical tariffs aimed at reshoring, and expanded secondary tariffs linked to sanctioned trade all raise the same issue: global uncertainty.

For Bitcoin, the dominant channel is volatility. While inflation narratives sometimes revive “hedge” arguments, trading reality often moves the other way first — liquidity tightens, leverage unwinds, and prices swing wider. Unless global liquidity improves meaningfully, tariffs may remain a recurring source of downside shock rather than upside fuel.

[johnblockbuster]

trade policy being a top risk for crypto was not on my bingo card a few years ago