Additional 10% tariffs apply from today to much of the goods imported into the US from almost all over the world following US President Donald Trump‘s decision, a blow to global trade.
These tariffs, which exempt some products – such as oil, gas, gold, copper, copper, silver, palladium, lumber for construction, semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and minerals not found in the US – are in addition to those already in place.
The new tariffs also exclude steel, aluminum and imported cars on which 25% tariffs are already imposed.
The bill will be even larger from April 9 for countries that export more products to the US than they import from it.
Tariffs on imports from China will reach 54%, those from the EU 20%, Vietnam 46% and Japan 24%…
According to the official document unveiled yesterday Friday by the US government, the new tariffs will affect some 80 countries and regions, including 27 EU member states.
However, removed from the official list are the Hurd and McDonald Islands in the Antarctic region, on which Trump had announced that tariffs would be imposed, despite the fact that only penguins live there.
The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) yesterday expressed concern as the US list still includes some of the world’s poorest countries.
UNCTAD pointed out that least developed countries and small island developing states account for 1.6 percent and 0.4 percent respectively of the U.S. trade deficit.
Donald Trump on Wednesday justified his decision to impose additional tariffs on products imported into the US, citing a “national emergency” to reduce the US deficit.
The tariff barriers announced by the Republican will be as high, economists say, as those imposed by the US in the 1930s, a time when global trade was less developed and countries were less dependent on other nations’ production.
Beijing has already responded by announcing the imposition of additional 34% tariffs on US imported goods from April 10, escalating the trade war, and other countries are expected to react.
Meanwhile, the markets are collapsing. In two days, $6 trillion has been lost from the US stock market, while European and Asian stock markets have plunged.
“My policies will never change,” Trump responded in a Truth Social post written all in all caps. “This is a good time to be rich, richer than ever!!!” he also added in all caps.
In addition, Trump asked Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to cut interest rates, considering that this is “the perfect” time thanks to advances in some prices (oil, eggs) since his return to the White House in January.
A few minutes later, however, Powell painted the outlook for the US economy after the new tariffs in dark colors: potentially higher inflation, lower growth and higher unemployment.
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