WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump announced tariffs of 25 percent on Japan and South Korea on Monday, stepping up pressure on the two key US allies and a dozen other economies to reach trade deals with Washington.
Trump issued similar letters to South Africa, Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos and Kazakhstan, saying he would slap duties on their products ranging from 25 percent to 40 percent.
The president had said at the weekend that, starting from Monday, he would send a first batch of letters to countries informing them that he would reimpose harsh levies earlier postponed in April.
In near-identically worded letters to Japanese and South Korean leaders, Trump said the tariff hikes came as their trading relationships with Washington were “unfortunately, far from Reciprocal.”
The tariffs set out in Trump’s latest letters are due to take effect August 1. He warned of further escalation if the countries involved retaliated against the duties.
Currently, the affected countries have been hit with a 10 percent levy Trump imposed on almost all trading partners.
But Trump said he was ready to lower the new levels if countries changed their trade policies: “We will, perhaps, consider an adjustment to this letter.”
Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said Sunday that he “won’t easily compromise” in trade talks with Washington.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday that Trump would sign an order later in the day to delay his original July 9 deadline for steeper tariffs to take effect — postponing their imposition to August 1.
She added that besides Japan and South Korea, there would be approximately 12 other partners receiving letters from Trump soon.
With the deadline extension, Leavitt noted that Trump would set out the “reciprocal tariff rate” for partners in the coming month as negotiations continue.
Trump originally announced sweeping tariffs on world economies on what he called “Liberation Day” on April 2, claiming the United States was being “ripped off.”
Amid market turmoil, he then suspended the initial tariffs for 90 days, a deadline that would have expired Wednesday without the latest extension.
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