TMTPOST -- The Trump administration’s reciprocal tariffs could be implemented at a universal rate of 20%, but some of U.S. trading partners may face new tariffs lower than that level, according to reports on Tuesday.
Credit：Xinhua News Agency
White House aides have drafted a proposal for U.S. President Donald Trump to impose around 20% tariffs on most American imports, The Washington Post cited people with the knowledge of the matter. It was said that White House advisors cautioned that several options are still on the table, meaning the 20% tariffs on almost every country beyond U.S. may not come to pass.
When announcing an executive proclamation to impose a 25% tariff on all automobile imports,effective on eastern daylight time April 3, Trump said last week the auto tariff, which is set to be added to existing tariffs, will continue to spur U.S. growth and is expected to result in $100 billion in revenues. White House staff secretary Will Scharf said the new tariffs apply to “foreign-made cars and light trucks.” He clarified that they come in addition to duties that are already in place. He also noted the tariffs will lead to “over $100 billion of new annual revenue” to the U.S. government.
The White House believes that, combined with additional auto and other sectoral tariffs, the sweeping tariff plan would raise more than $6 trillion in new federal revenue and amount to the biggest tax hike in decades, The Washington Post learned on Tuesday. The newspaper added the White House is also weighing a different reciprocal tariff rate to individual countries, just as Trump said Monday: “Whatever they charge us, we’ll charge them.”
The Wall Street Journal later Tuesday quoted sources that the Trump team is preparing a new tariff option before his announcement of the reciprocal tariff plan.
In addition to the 20% universal tariff on virtually all U.S. imports and a reciprocal plan that would apply different tariffs to individual countries, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is preparing a third option, which will apply the sweeping tariffs on a subset of countries and the tariff rate could be not as high as 20%, according to the Journal report. It’s unclear which option Trump will choose and the sources underscored the policy discussions are underway, despite the president said Monday night he had settled on a plan.
Trump has described April 2 as "Liberation Day" as he touts the new reciprocal tariffs on a wide range of imported goods that his administration plans to unveil on that day. The president said Sunday night that he would target essentially all U.S. trading partners, while claiming that his tariffs would be “far more generous” than what other countries charge the United States.
White House on Monday confirmed Trump will announced detailed reciprocal tariffs on Wednesday, April 2. In his first event from the White House Rose Garden on Wednesday, Trump will unveil the reciprocal tariff plan featuring country-based levies, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said.
Leavitt declined to provide more details about the upcoming reciprocal tariffs, such as which countries would be subject to these duties and the related tariff rates. But she noted there are “no exemptions at this time” when asked about whether lower tariffs would be applied to products used by American farmers.
American Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has suggested two week ago that the Trump administration could narrow the focus of new tariffs on a handful of prime targets, which he dubbed as the “Dirty 15”. That refers to the 15% of nations that account for the bulk of U.S. trading volume while imposing hefty tariffs and other “non-tariff barriers” on U.S. goods.
Bessent said on Tuesday the reciprocal tariffs Trump would unveil on Wednesday will serve more as a cap, which means these tariffs are the highest possible ones. Accordingly, the targeted countries can work to reduce the duties by measures that meet U.S. demands, he told lawmakers.
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