As part of his so-called “Liberation Day” measures to balance trade with countries around the world and to boost manufacturing within America, Trump announced a “baseline” 10% tariff on all US imports, with higher reciprocal levies on goods from the 60 countries that were specifically targeted, including India, China, Japan, the UK and European Union (EU) member states.
In a typically rambling speech announcing the tariffs at the Rose Garden of the White House, Trump said the “discounted reciprocal tariff” for the countries being specifically targeted was exactly half of the tariffs charged by these nations, along with their “currency manipulation” and trade barriers.
However, there was no clarity on how the US administration had calculated these figures and then arrived at the new tariffs, which Trump described as “kind of reciprocal” levies and “not full reciprocal” tariffs.
The figure for India was half of the 52% tariffs that the Trump administration claimed India imposes on US products, along with currency manipulation and trade barriers, according to a chart that was distributed to media at the event.
Trump contended that while the US charges a tariff of 2.4% on motorcycles, India charges 70%. He also contended that India charges 70% tariffs on automobiles while announcing a 25% tariff on foreign-made cars.
“India – very, very tough. The prime minister just left and he’s a great friend of mine. But I said, ‘You’re a friend of mine but you’ve not been treating us right. They charge us 52%,” Trump said while announcing country-specific reciprocal tariffs, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington in February.
The Indian government is expected to announce its response to the US reciprocal tariffs later on Thursday. However, with Modi set to travel to Thailand early on Thursday morning to attend a Bimstec Summit in Bangkok on April 4, people familiar with the matter said the Indian response may be announced only after the premier and his team reach the Thai capital.
During their meeting in Washington in February, Modi and Trump set a goal of more than doubling bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030 and agreed to negotiate the first tranche of a mutually beneficial, multi-sector bilateral trade agreement (BTA) by the fall of 2025.
This trade deal is aimed at deepening bilateral trade across goods and services, increasing market access, reducing tariff and non-tariff barriers, and deepening supply chain integration. US assistant trade representative Brendan Lynch visited India last month with a team for talks with interlocutors aimed at setting the terms of reference for the proposed BTA, and the two sides will now commence negotiations for the deal.
According to the US Trade Representative, total India-US trade in goods was worth an estimated $129.2 billion in 2024. US exports accounted for $41.8 billion, up 3.4% over the figure for 2023, while Indian exports totalled $87.4 billion, up 4.5% over the figure for 2023.
The reciprocal tariffs for some of the major trade partners of the US were 34% for China, 20% for the EU, 24% for Japan, 25% for South Korea, 10% for the UK and 32% for Taiwan.
The reciprocal tariffs for 44% for Sri Lanka, 37% for Bangladesh, 29% for Pakistan, 30% for South Africa, 17% for Israel, 10% for Singapore and 10% for Australia. There were some surprise inclusions in the list of countries being specifically targeted, including 44% for Myanmar, 20% for Jordan and 48% for the small Southeast Asian nation of Laos.
Trump claimed there would be no tariffs “if you build in America”, and urged the trade partners being targeted to “terminate your own tariffs, drop your barriers, don’t manipulate your currencies…and start buying tens of billions of dollars of American goods”.
He said the countries being targeted by the US actions are “gonna fight” but he had told the leaders of these nations that “we have to take care of our country”.
Trump also claimed that the threat of his tariffs had already led to “$6 trillion of investments” in the US.
Jay Timmons, president of the US National Association of Manufacturers, said in a statement: “The high costs of new tariffs threaten investment, jobs, supply chains and, in turn, America’s ability to outcompete other nations and lead as the preeminent manufacturing superpower.”
Analysts have warned Trump’s tariffs could unleash devastating trade wars that can impact the global economy.
