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Donald Trump to send first tariff letters at this time on Monday
Trump issued a warning of additional 10 per cent tariff to any country aligning themselves with what he called were “anti-American policies of BRICS”.
US President Donald Trump said the first tariff letters will be sent 12 pm (1600 GMT) on Monday (9:30 pm IST) and issued a warning of additional tariffs on countries aligning with ‘anti-American’ policies of BRICS grouping, which is currently holding its summit in Brazil.
Taking to Truth Social, Donald Trump said he is “pleased to announce that the UNITED STATES TARIFF Letters, and/or Deals, with various Countries from around the World, will be delivered starting 12:00 P.M. (Eastern), Monday, July 7th.”
In another post shared shortly after, Donald Trump issued a warning of additional 10 per cent tariff to any country aligning themselves with what he called were “anti-American policies of BRICS”.
“There will be no exceptions to this policy. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump added.
BRICS is an intergovernmental organisation comprising ten countries – Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The grouping is currently holding the 17th BRICS Summit in Brazil, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also gone.
The White House in April announced sharp retaliatory tariffs on dozens of trading partners in April, citing a lack of "reciprocity" in trade relations. The tariffs were paused for 90 days, set to kick in on Wednesday, July 9.
The tariff announcement, which comprised 10 per cent base levies and additional varying amounts for countries, sparked fears of a global trade war that shook financial markets and set off a scramble among policymakers to guard their economies.
Trump announced on Friday the levies' imposition would be pushed to August 1 to allow time for talks to wrap up, but said he signed 12 letters to inform some countries of rate hikes, which will likely be sent on Monday.
That 90-day pause period ends on July 9, although Trump early on Friday said the tariffs could be even higher - ranging up to 70 per cent.
"I signed some letters and they'll go out on Monday, probably twelve," Reuters quoted Trump as saying, when asked about his plans on the tariff front. "Different amounts of money, different amounts of tariffs."
Trump had imposed 16 per cent tariff on India over the baseline 10 per cent.
Negotiations between both countries have been going well for weeks, and Trump himself suggested at the end of June that a "very big" agreement was imminent.
