President Donald Trump is dismissing business concerns over the uncertainty caused by his planned tariffs on a range of American trading partners and the prospect of higher prices.

National Economic Council director Kevin Hassett said in an interview with ABC News' "This Week" that the tariffs are not meant to start a trade war. "What happened was that we launched a drug war, not a trade war, and it was part of the negotiation to get Canada and Mexico to stop shipping fentanyl across our borders," Hassett said.

Trump at first imposed 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican exports to the U.S., then exempted the duties on Mexican- and Canadian-made vehicles being transported into the U.S. and later by week’s end delayed the tariffs on almost all items for four weeks until April 2.

Heterodox economists have long criticized politicians’ maniacal obsession with GDP growth, pointing to its relatively recent creation as a measure of national accounts and its limits as a catch-all indicator of a country’s economic health.

President Donald Trump said Friday that he’s committed to making the U.S. a world leader in cryptocurrencies as industry leaders heaped praise on him for reversing what they said had been unfair attacks on digital assets by the previous administration.

President Donald Trump is reportedly interested in creating a Bitcoin strategic reserve. The Bitcoin strategic reserve will be a key topic at this Friday's White House Crypto Summit following recent comments from US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick that President Donald Trump is highly interested in a Bitcoin reserve.

Shares of GM, Ford, and Stellantis gained Wednesday as the White House granted the automakers a one-month exemption from new tariffs on Canada and Mexico.