Washington | Facing a global market meltdown, President Donald Trump on Wednesday abruptly backed down on his tariffs on most nations for 90 days, but raised his tax rate on Chinese imports to 125 per cent.

It was seemingly an attempt to narrow what had been an unprecedented trade war between the US and most of the world to one between the US and China.

Global markets surged on the development, but the precise details of Trump's plans to ease tariffs on non-China trade partners were not immediately clear.

Dow surges 2,000 after President Trump announces pause on many of his tariffs except for China

New York | US stocks are flying higher after President Donald Trump announced a drop in some of his tariffs, except for China.

The S&P 500 was up 5.7 per cent after erasing an earlier loss of 0.7 per cent. The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared 2,000 points, or 5 per cent, and the Nasdaq composite was up 6.8 per cent.

Investors have been desperate for Trump to ease up on his tariffs, which economists say could cause a global recession and increase inflation. But Trump also said that he's raising tariffs on China, the world's second-largest economy.