U.S. President Donald Trump has called April 2 “Liberation Day,” with promises to roll out a set of tariffs, or taxes on imports from other countries, that he claimed will free the country from a reliance on foreign goods.
To do this, Trump has said he’ll impose “reciprocal” tariffs to match the duties that other countries charge on U.S. products.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday that Trump would unveil his plans to place reciprocal tariffs on nearly all American trading partners on Wednesday, but maintained that the details are up to the president to announce.
Since taking office just months ago, Trump has proven to be aggressive with tariff threats, all while creating a sense of whiplash through on-again, off-again trade actions. And it’s possible that we’ll see more delays or confusion this week.
The president argued that tariffs protect U.S. industries from unfair foreign competition, raise money for the federal government and provide leverage to demand concessions from other countries.
He emphatically stated he will place a 25% tariff on all imports from any country that buys oil or gas from Venezuela, which includes the U.S. itself, starting Wednesday — in addition to imposing new tariffs on the South American country.
His 25% tariffs on auto imports will start being collected Thursday, with taxes on fully-imported cars kicking off at midnight. The tariffs are set to expand to applicable auto parts in the following weeks, through May 3.
The White House says it expects to raise $100 billion in revenue annually from these new duties, but economists stress this trade action will upend the auto industry’s global supply chain and lead to higher prices for consumers.
Trump imposed a 10% tariff on all Chinese imports beginning Feb. 4, a levy he later doubled to 20% from March 4 onward. And China has hit back with retaliatory tariffs covering a range of U.S. goods, including a 15% tariff on coal and liquefied natural gas products and 10% tariff on crude oil from the U.S. that took effect Feb 10. China also imposed tariffs of up to 15% on key U.S. farm exports starting March 10.
Trump’s expanded steel and aluminum tariffs went into effect earlier this month, too. Both metals are now taxed at 25% across the board — with Trump’s order to remove steel exemptions and raise aluminum’s levy from his previously-imposed 2018 import taxes taking effect March 12.
Canada and Mexico, America’s two largest trading partners, have also faced steep tariffs. Earlier this month, Trump implemented a partial, month-long delay of his 25% tariffs on both countries — delaying taxes for auto-related imports as well as goods that comply with the 2020 US-Mexico-Canada Agreement until early April.
But other imports are still levied, as well as a lower 10% duty on potash and Canadian energy products. In response to these tariffs, as well as the new steel and aluminum import taxes, Canada has rolled out a series of counter measures amounting to billions of dollars on U.S. goods. Mexico, meanwhile, has yet to formally impose new levies — signaling it may still hope to de-escalate the trade war, although the country previously promised retaliation to Trump’s actions.
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