Trump announced ‘discounted reciprocal’ tariffs on countries around the world. A quick glance at the partial list of 50 above show that a 10% baseline tariff is set for more than 180 countries and territories.
“It’s going to be a day that hopefully you’re going to look back in years to come and you’re going to say, ‘You know, he was right. This has turned out to be one of the most important days in the history of our country,'” Trump said at the Rose Garden Event on April 2, where he disclosed the names of countries facing tariffs.
The new tariff rollout includes tariffs on some of leading Asian economies like China, India, South Korea and Japan.
“China firmly opposes this and will resolutely take countermeasures to safeguard its own rights and interests,” China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement Thursday morning.
China faces 34% in the form of retaliatory tariffs which come on top of the existing 20% duties on all Chinese imports to the U.S.
“I have great respect for President Xi (Jinping) of China, great respect for China, but they were taking tremendous advantage of us,” Trump said during his address Wednesday. “They understand exactly what’s happening and … they’re going to fight.”
Vietnam and Cambodia, have also been hit hard by Trump’s tariffs, complicating trade relations.
Most countries facing a high rate of reciprocal tariffs also have large trade imbalances like the European Union and China but leading trade partners, Canada and Mexico are missing from the list.
According to the White House the existing fentanyl/migration International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) orders remain in effect for Canada and Mexico, and are unaffected by this order. This means goods compliant under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) will continue to see a 0% tariff, non-USMCA compliant goods will see a 25% tariff, and non-USMCA compliant energy and potash will see a 10% tariff.
The list also includes countries with which U.S. has a trade surplus such as the UK, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Australia. Such countries face the 10% baseline tariff – in retaliation to the 10% they charge to the U.S.
A Downing Street source told the BBC: “We don’t want any tariffs at all, but a lower levy than others vindicates our approach. It matters because the difference between 10% and 20% is thousands of jobs.
Economic Implications
The new tariffs could push up consumer prices at home and trigger retaliatory measures from key trading partners abroad. If that happens, we could be looking at trade war. Markets are already jittery, and the uncertainty is beginning to show. The immediate reaction of the tariffs was felt with U.S. stocks dropping after hours as Trump imposed sweeping tariffs.
Trump’s tariffs signal a dramatic shift in how the U.S. plans to engage with the global economy.
While the move is aimed to correct the long-standing trade imbalances, the ripple effects could be damaging and may potentially isolate America from some of its leading trading partners.
Here’s the entire list of countries facing ‘reciprocal’ tariffs
