Summary:
- US President Donald Trump announced plans to impose higher tariff rates of 25%-40% on key trading partners and signed an executive order holding off the new duties until Aug. 1.
- Tariffs on Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Tunisia, would be 25%, South Africa and Bosnia 30%, Indonesia 32%, Bangladesh and Serbia 35%, Thailand and Cambodia 36%, while Laos and Myanmar would face a 40% levy.
- Meanwhile, Trump suggested the possibility of additional trade negotiations and delays at the White House shortly after he sent out the tariff letters, as he said the notifications were “not 100% firm”. He also said the US is close in making a deal with India.
- White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said additional letters will arrive in the coming days.
Main takeaways:
- the deadline was pushed towards August 1st vs. July 9th;
- announced new tariff levels (effective on August 1st) for 14 countries
- Trump said that the tariffs on each country would be separate from any “sectoral” tariffs that he imposes;
- we should expect more deals/letters coming: Leavitt said Trump will send more letters