Trump says he plans reciprocal tariffs, will affect ‘everyone’
US President Donald Trump said he plans to unveil reciprocal tariffs next week in a major escalation of his trade war with US economic partners.
Trump made the announcement during a meeting with visiting Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Friday (Feb 7) and said the action would affect “everyone”, without specifying exactly what measures he plans to take.
“I’ll be announcing that next week – on reciprocal trade – so that we’re treated evenly with other countries. We don’t want any more or any less,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office, adding that he planned to hold a press conference on the matter. He said he planned to hold a meeting on the issue on Monday or Tuesday.
At a White House press conference later on Friday, Trump suggested that the reciprocal tariffs could come in lieu of the 10 to 20 per cent universal import duty plan at the center of his economic message during the campaign. He said he was inclined to do “mostly” reciprocal tariffs over global import duties.
“I think that’s the only fair way to do it. That way, nobody’s hurt. They charge us. We charge them. It’s the same thing,” Trump said. “I seem to be going in that line as opposed to a flat fee, tariff.”
Trump said that tariffs targeting automobiles, in particular, were under consideration.
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“That’s always on the table, it’s a very big deal,” he said. “We have to equalise it.”
The push for reciprocal tariffs has long been a pursuit of the president and some of his top advisers.
Trump promised during his presidential campaign to advance legislation empowering him to hit any country that charges a duty on a US-made good with “the same exact tariff”. He’s taken particular aim at the European Union’s (EU) value-added tax, a minimum standard rate of 15 per cent that can go considerably higher for some countries, telling reporters on Monday that the levy went “through the roof”.
Trump and his advisers have also previously suggested the US could use tariffs to combat non-tariff trade barriers imposed by other countries. The US president has argued that he is pursuing a “fair deal” for US consumers.
But the push on reciprocal tariffs comes as the US president has also suggested plans to implement a global tariff, target the EU specifically, and impose sectoral sanctions on steel, pharmaceuticals, oil and other key sectors.
Aides say the threats give him negotiation leverage with other countries on issues including illegal immigration and fentanyl smuggling, as well as trade deficits.
Earlier this month, Trump announced but then delayed 25 per cent levies on Canada and Mexico after the countries made only modest pledges to address his concerns over border security, leading some to question his willingness to follow through on his threats.
The president did hit China with 10 per cent levies, though suspended planned tariffs on low-cost goods mailed directly to consumers as his administration works to figure out how to implement the changes. BLOOMBERG
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