Sources: CNN, Reuters
President Donald Trump has escalated trade tensions by sending letters to the leaders of seven additional countries, warning of potential new tariff rates that could reach as high as 30%. This latest move adds to the growing list of U.S. trading partners facing increased tariffs.
The countries targeted include the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Moldova, Brunei, Algeria, Libya, and Iraq. If implemented, these tariffs will take effect on August 1, pending ongoing negotiations.
During a White House meeting with African leaders, Trump indicated that he would soon announce tariff levels for Brazil, criticizing the country for its trade practices. “Brazil, as an example, has been not good to us. Not good at all,” he stated.
The proposed tariff rates for Sri Lanka, Moldova, Iraq, and Libya are lower than those announced in April, while the rates for the Philippines and Brunei have increased. The tariff on Algerian goods remains unchanged at 30%.
In total, the U.S. imported $29 billion worth of goods from these seven nations last year, a figure that represents less than 1% of the $3.2 trillion in total imports.
Following Trump's announcement, U.S. stock markets showed little movement, with the Dow Jones rising 50 points, or 0.11%, and the S&P 500 and Nasdaq experiencing gains of 0.25% and 0.58%, respectively.
Since Trump introduced "reciprocal" tariffs in April, negotiations for new trade agreements have progressed slowly, with few concrete deals emerging. During a cabinet meeting, Trump remarked, “a letter means a deal,” though some countries do not appear to share that interpretation.
As businesses navigate the complexities of importing goods amid this uncertainty, they remain under pressure from the impending tariffs.
In the letters, Trump wrote that he takes particular issue with the trade deficits the United States runs with other nations, meaning America buys more goods from there compared to how much American businesses export to those countries. Trump also said the tariffs would be set in response to other policies that he deems are impeding American goods from being sold abroad.
Trump has encouraged world leaders to manufacture goods in the United States to avoid tariffs. If they chose to retaliate by slapping higher tariffs on American goods, Trump threatened to tack that onto the rate charged on their country’s goods shipped to the United States.
Trump has now sent 21 letters on tariff rates to heads of state this week, and more could still come. The 25% tariff Trump threatened to impose on Japan and South Korea would be most likely to impact prices of goods Americans buy, since the two nations are America’s fifth- and seventh-top sources of foreign goods.
Wednesday at 12:01 a.m. ET was the initial deadline Trump set three months ago for countries to ink trade deals with the US or instantly face higher tariff rates. However, on Monday he extended that deadline to August 1.
No comments:
Post a Comment