White House mulls sweeping new tariffs to reshape global trade
The Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing three sources, that White House advisers have prepared a plan to impose roughly a 20 percent tariff on the majority of imports to the USA. Experts warn that implementing this plan could send shockwaves through the global economy.
Representatives from Washington emphasised that several tariff proposals are still on the table, and a final decision has not yet been made.
One possible approach is introducing uniform tariffs on imports from nearly all countries. Another option is to set different tariff rates depending on the country of origin. On Monday, Trump expressed support for the latter, indicating that the U.S. would mirror the trade measures imposed by other nations.
On Sunday, Trump announced that the mutual tariffs to be revealed this week would cover all countries maintaining trade relations with the USA.
"We would start with all countries, so let’s see what happens," declared the president. He added that he plans to introduce a package of reciprocal tariffs against countries that charge fees for exports from the USA, to level the playing field.
The American leader announced he would present a comprehensive plan on tariff policy on Wednesday, which he called "Liberation Day." So far, the US administration has imposed tariffs on aluminium, steel, and cars and increased tariffs on all goods imported from China.
Sources close to the matter reported that Trump could still change his mind, although in recent days, he has pushed for widespread tariffs and considers this a more straightforward approach.
"Most aggressive actions regarding tariffs"
Although many details remain unknown, even to Trump himself, CNN on Tuesday assessed that "America’s Liberation Day" could be the "most aggressive" move in tariff policy undertaken by "the president with the greatest obsession with tariffs in modern history."
Last year, the USA recorded its most significant trade deficits with China, the European Union, Mexico, Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, India, and Canada. ABC News emphasises that mutual tariffs could increase the prices of imported goods in the American market.
