Trump Announces 'Fair and Reciprocal' Tariffs on US Trading Partners

President Donald Trump doubled down on his extraordinary push for more balanced trade, announcing on Thursday a round of new, sweeping reciprocal tariffs that could boost America’s revenue — but could also ignite a global trade war and add to America’s rebounding inflation problem. “THREE GREAT WEEKS, PERHAPS THE BEST EVER, BUT TODAY IS THE BIG ONE: RECIPROCAL TARIFFS!!! MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!” Trump posted Thursday morning before the announcement. The tariffs, which Trump put into motion via an executive action Thursday, won’t take immediate effect, an intentional move to give nations time to potentially negotiate new trade terms with the US, a White House official said Thursday.

President Donald Trump on Thursday rolled out his plan to increase U.S. tariffs to match the tax rates that other countries charge on imports, possibly triggering a broader economic confrontation with allies and rivals alike as Trump hopes to eliminate any trade imbalances. “I’ve decided for purposes of fairness that I will charge a reciprocal tariff,” Trump said in the Oval Office at the proclamation signing. “It’s fair to all. No other country can complain.” Trump’s Republican administration has insisted that its new tariffs would level the playing field between U.S. manufacturers and foreign competitors, though these new taxes would likely be paid by American consumers and businesses either directly or in the form of higher prices.

President Trump ordered reciprocal tariffs placed on countries found to treat US imports unfairly — with the European Union, India and Japan among the targets. Thursday’s order requires the Office of the US Trade Representative and Commerce Secretary-designate Howard Lutnick to rapidly draft recommendations — with the Office of Management and Budget due to submit a fiscal-impact report within 180 days, possibly after the first levies are already imposed. “This should have been done years ago,” Trump, 78, told reporters in the Oval Office. A White House official told reporters that the US will take special aim at India, which the person called “the maharaja of tariffs;” as well as the European Union’s value added tax (VAT) averaging 21.8%, which “works effectively like a tariff;” and Japan, which the official said has steep non-tariff barriers to US imports.