U.S. President Donald Trump bristled at suggestions that Wall Street believes he¡¯s ultimately unwilling to follow through on extreme tariff threats, saying his repeated retreats are instead part of a strategy to exert trade concessions.

¡°It¡¯s called negotiation,¡± Trump said on Wednesday, adding that he intentionally would ¡°set a number at a ridiculous high number¡± and then ¡°go down a little bit¡± as part of talks.

Trump was asked during an Oval Office event to respond to reports of what is being called ¡°TACO¡± trade, in which investors seize on market tumbles after the president makes tariff threats, predicting he will ultimately relent and equities will rebound.