Donald Trump signs executive order imposing up to 41% tariffs on imports; India, Taiwan, South Africa hit hard
Trump also signed a separate order that increases the tariff rate on Canada to 35% from 25%, with the higher levy taking effect on Aug. 1. That change excludes goods that are covered under a US-Mexico-Canada free trade pact he negotiated in his first term.
Under the updated tariff schedule, Pakistan will face a 19% tariff, while Bangladesh and Vietnam will be subject to 20% duties each. Other countries affected include Cameroon, Chad, Israel, Turkey, Venezuela, and Lesotho, all with tariffs set at 15%. South Africa's imports will see a higher rate of 30%, and Switzerland faces the steepest tariff at 39%.
President Donald Trump will keep minimum global tariff rates at 10%, resisting prior suggestions he could raise the floor to 15% or higher, according to a White House statement Thursday.
The White House separately released a list of tariff rates on imports from several other trading partners that had yet to finalize trade frameworks as his August 1 deadline nears.
The White House made the announcement in a fact sheet, which said the president had signed an executive order on Thursday. It was unclear how many trading partners will receive the minimum so-called reciprocal tariff rate and how many will receive higher levies.
In justifying the new tariffs, Trump said he acted based on updated intelligence and recommendations from senior officials, citing the "continued lack of reciprocity in our bilateral trade relationships" and the economic impact of foreign tariff and non-tariff barriers.
"Some trading partners have offered terms that, in my judgment, do not sufficiently address imbalances," Trump stated. Others, he added, "have failed to engage in negotiations or to take adequate steps to align with the United States on economic and national security matters."
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