President Trump is preparing to enact reciprocal tariffs on countries that tax American goods unfairly, delivering on his threats to get even with trade partners that take advantage of the United States.
Joined by his pro-tariff Commerce Secretary, Howard Lutnick, the president signed a memorandum declaring "fair and reciprocal" trade as America's policy from this day forward.
"On trade, I have decided, for purposes of fairness, that I will charge a reciprocal tariff, meaning whatever countries charge the United States of America, we will charge them. No more, no less,” Trump said in the Oval Office.
“In other words, they charge us a tax or tariff, and we charge them the exact same tax or tariff,” he added.
Trump has long supported using tariffs to promote American industry and reduce America's vast trade deficit, which hit a record $1 trillion in 2024.
Indeed, Trump has often pointed out that other countries have higher tariffs than America does, but "those days are over," he said in the Oval Office on Thursday.
The White House released a fact sheet listing examples of unfair and "non-reciprocal" trade arrangements that Trump will correct. The U.S. tariff on ethanol is a mere 2.5%, but Brazil charges a tariff of 18% on American ethanol, for example.
"The U.S. average applied Most Favored Nation (MFN) tariff on agricultural goods is 5%. But India’s average applied MFN tariff is 39%. India also charges a 100% tariff on U.S. motorcycles, while we only charge a 2.4% tariff on Indian motorcycles,” the White House noted.
"Gone," the White House added, "are the days of America being taken advantage of: this plan will put the American worker first, improve our competitiveness in every area of industry, reduce our trade deficit, and bolster our economic and national security."
While Trump has embraced tariffs to promote an "America First" economic agenda, he has also leveraged the threat of tariffs as a negotiating tactic.
Earlier this month, Trump paused sweeping tariffs on America's two largest trading partners, Canada and Mexico, after both countries agreed to reinforce their borders.
While critics of Trump's protectionist agenda say tariffs will raise the cost of consumer goods for average Americans, the president has said the pain of any economic shocks will pay off in the end when America emerges stronger and more self-reliant than before.
“TODAY IS THE BIG ONE: RECIPROCAL TARIFFS!!!” Trump posted on his social media site, Truth Social. “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
