US tariffs take aim everywhere, including uninhabited islands
By AFP
April 2, 2025
The world’s remotest corners couldn’t hide from US President Donald Trump’s global tariffs onslaught Wednesday — even the uninhabited Heard and McDonald Islands.
The Australian territory in the sub-Antarctic Indian Ocean was slapped with 10 percent tariffs on all its exports, despite the icy archipelago having zero residents — other than many seals, penguins and other birds.
Strings of ocean specks around the globe, including Australia’s Cocos (Keeling) Islands and the Comoros off the coast of Africa, were likewise subjected to 10 percent new tariffs.
Another eye-catching inclusion in the tariffs list was Myanmar, which is digging out from an earthquake that left nearly 3,000 people dead, and whose exports to the United States will now face 44 percent in new levies.
Britain’s Falkland Islands — population 3,200 people and around one million penguins — got particular punishment.
The South Atlantic territory — mostly famous for a 1982 war fought by Britain to expel an Argentinian invasion — was walloped with tariffs of 41 percent on exports to the United States.
The Falklands’ would-be ruler Argentina only faces 10 percent new tariffs.
According to the Falklands Chamber of Commerce, the territory is ranked 173 in the world in terms of global exports, with only $306 million of products exported in 2019. This included $255 million in exports of mollusks and $30 million of frozen fish.
Trump Imposes 34% Tariff on Chinese Goods, 10% Global Minimum
Cambodia, Laos, Madagascar hit hardest with 40%-plus tariffs
On Tuesday, President Donald Trump announced sweeping double-digit tariffs on imports from all countries, starting at a minimum threshold of 10 percent.
The administration released a table of rates that it has calculated for 50 different foreign nations' tariffs on American goods, including the equivalent impact of non-tariff trade barriers. In a press conference Wednesday, Trump said that the U.S. would impose a tariff equal to half of each nation's rate on U.S. goods, as a "kind" discounted reciprocal charge.
Most of the nations facing the steepest U.S. tariff hikes are developing countries in the Indo-Pacific, including Cambodia (49 percent), Laos, Madagascar, Vietnam, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand (36 percent). Vietnam and Thailand have relevance for American industry, as they have become hubs for Chinese manufacturers looking to source inexpensive labor and evade American tariffs.
China is the most important trade partner on the list, and will be subject to a rate of 34 percent, higher than many analysts predicted. The new tariff stacks on top of a previously-declared 20 percent rate on Chinese goods, so it will bump the net rate on China's exports to a total of 54 percent.
Taiwan - which supplies most of the advanced semiconductors used in the U.S. market - will be subject to a rate of 32 percent. European goods will be subject to a flat 20 percent rate for all member states, from Hungary to Germany.
Canada and Mexico will be treated separately from the rest of the global list, and are still subject to previously-announced 25 percent tariffs, according to the Wall Street Journal. Likewise, Russia, Cuba, Belarus and North Korea are not covered; a White House spokesperson told Axios that they were left off because they already face significant sanctions and barriers to U.S. trade.
Some commodities will be treated differently. The new country-by-country tariff schedule does not apply to copper, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, lumber, bullion, and "energy and other certain minerals." The semiconductor exclusion will be of particular relief for Taiwan and for U.S. tech companies.
A separate new tariff of 25 percent on all foreign-built autos takes effect immediately, with repercussions for ro/ro carriers. The administration's 25 percent tariff on foreign steel and aluminum also remains in effect.
The new tariffs take full effect on April 9, giving time for bilateral talks with affected nations. "The silver lining for investors could be that this is only a starting point for negotiations with other countries and ultimately tariff rates will come down across the board," Northlight Asset Management chief investment officer Chris Zaccarelli told the Wall Street Journal.
Some anomalies on the initial public list have attracted attention. Lesotho, a small landlocked nation surrounded by South Africa, was hit with the highest U.S. tariff rate on the schedule, 50 percent. France's island territories of Reunion, Saint Pierre and Miquelon received elevated tariffs of 37 percent and 50 percent, respectively. The list released by the White House also imposed a 10 percent tariff on the Heard and McDonald Islands, an uninhabited Australian territory in Antarctic waters. The formal list attached to the executive order is shorter, and it omits these entries.
US excludes steel, aluminum, gold from reciprocal tariffs
The White House said steel and aluminum imports won’t be subject to reciprocal tariffs in a move that will provide at least some relief to domestic buyers already incurring 25% duties on all imports of the key metals used in everything from automobiles to dishwashers.
Steel and aluminum already subject to Section 232 tariffs won’t incur the duties announced by President Donald Trump on Wednesday, the White House said in a fact sheet. Gold and copper were cited as having exemptions as well.
The determination indicates the administration at least gave some leeway for metals markets that Trump has long prioritized. The president in February ordered a 25% tariff on all steel and aluminum imports, removing all exemptions as he began to hit a reset-button on a widening trade war.
Shares of steelmakers are broadly higher this year, outpacing the larger market, as the tariffs helped boost prices of the metal to the highest in more than a year. But the moves come at a price. Demand for the metal has been weak amid lackluster construction markets, stubborn inflation and high borrowing costs.
Nucor Corp., the largest American steelmaker, Steel Dynamics Inc. and United States Steel Corp. last month warned investors of lackluster earnings results for the first quarter.
Performance for aluminum companies has been uneven in 2025. Shares of Century Aluminum Co. are up about 2% for the year, while Alcoa Corp. is down more than 18%, with much of it’s aluminum produced outside the US.
Gold and copper traders were pricing in the impact from Trump’s tariffs on the global economy. Bullion hit a fresh record during Asia’s morning, while copper futures slumped.
(By Joe Deaux)
Trump Tariffs Leave UK Economy Uncertain
- President Trump's anticipated tariffs are causing significant concern in the UK, particularly for the automotive industry, and are expected to impact trade relations and the broader economy.
- Experts warn of widespread consequences, including higher costs for consumers, a drag on global economic activity, and potential disruptions to businesses and investments.
- The UK government is attempting to maintain a cordial relationship with the US while seeking a trade agreement to mitigate the negative effects of the tariffs, but faces considerable uncertainty.
Nature abhors a vacuum, or so they, or potentially Aristotle, once said. During weeks like this, it feels more accurate to say it’s the news which is doing the abhorring.
Speculation has been, understandably, rampant as to the nature, variety, and impact of the tariffs the US President Donald Trump is expected to introduce on Wednesday, and just how they might affect everything from Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ fiscal headroom and the price of your supermarket shopping, to Tesla stocks and fears of a global recession.
Trump has already imposed 25 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminium imports, with further import taxes on cars and parts arriving in the US set to come in from April 2, in a blow to the UK’s automotive industry and its £7.6bn worth of exports to the US last year.
The so-called ‘Liberation Day’ package of announcements – set to be unveiled in a Rose Garden event at 9pm UK time – is expected to include reciprocal tariffs on countries levying duties on US goods, dashing hopes of the UK’s ‘special relationship’ sparing us.
The Washington Post reported White House aides have drawn up plans for 20 per cent tariffs on most imported goods arriving in the States – but suggested no final decision had yet been taken, leaving question marks over specific sectors or goods facing different rates.
Ultimately, we don’t know – with any ironclad certainty – exactly what Trump might do.
We don’t know exactly when fresh tariffs on the UK or the wider world will take effect, although there will likely be at least some delay between announcing and implementing.
We also don’t know for sure what other countries will do in response – from grinning and bearing it to retaliating with their own tariffs, or negotiating with Trump, like Canada and Mexico – and how Trump will then respond to that in return… and on and on it could go.
Amid the global vacuum of information, stock markets and investors are getting jittery, with the FTSE 100 down 1.3 per cent on Monday. Economists and experts are issuing warnings, including of a hit to consumers from “the burden of higher tariffs” and a “drag on global activity”, as per the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
Far-reaching consequences, no matter what
Myron Jobson, from Interactive Investor, stressed that even if the UK “manages to escape direct levies”, the tariffs “could have far-reaching consequences” for Brits, including impacts on mortgages, corporate investment and jobs, pensions and economic growth.
Business lobby groups such as the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) have warned of the “huge headache for small firms” with “extra costs” causing a “huge ripple effect”.
Policy chairwoman Tina McKenzie urged the government to “consider state assistance” to SMEs as they “navigate the turmoil and help the firms bounce back as going concerns”.
And pollsters at More in Common found most Brits – 59 per cent – when asked said they were very or quite worried about tariffs. Just 11 per cent said they were not worried at all.
No exemption for the UK
So far, so cheery. Ministers – up to and including Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer – have accepted hopes of an exemption ahead of Wednesday have faded, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves warning cabinet there will be an economic “impact”, but ongoing deal talks continue.
Marco Forgione, director-general of the Chartered Institute of Export & International Trade (CIEIT) told me yesterday that he believes the US administration hopes to see a “clear sense of impact from their tariffs”, as Trump focuses on “his America First agenda”.
But he insisted there was a “clear opportunity very soon afterwards we could seal an agreement” and an “appetite in Washington for a trade agreement to be reached”.
Another sliver of silver lining emerged on Tuesday morning when Professor David Miles, from the OBR, suggested to the Treasury committee that a “very limited” trade war, which the UK was not involved in, could perhaps be “very, very mildly positive” for the economy.
Ultimately, Starmer’s approach – maintaining a cordial relationship with the President, pursuing an economic deal, and avoiding “knee-jerk” reaction – has been shaped by the political and economic – not to mention geopolitical – complexities of the situation. There’s little he, or we, can now do, but hold our breath.
By City AM
Key details on Trump’s market-shaking tariffs
By AFP
April 2, 2025
US President Donald Trump unveiled a baseline 10 percent tariff hitting trading partners, with a higher rate on those deemed bad actors - Copyright AFP/File Frederic J. Brown
Beiyi SEOW
After weeks of anticipation, US President Donald Trump unveiled sweeping new tariffs on trading partners Wednesday, calling it a “declaration of economic independence.”
A fresh “baseline tariff” of 10 percent will apply to economies around the world, with steeper rates tailored to those that Washington deemed as bad actors.
What are the details of Trump’s latest announcement?
– New tariffs –
A 10 percent “baseline tariff” kicks in at 12:01am (0401 GMT) on April 5, while elevated rates for those the White House deemed “the worst offenders” take effect at 12:01am on April 9.
The steeper additional tariffs impact major US trading partners, with the European Union facing a 20 percent rate and China a 34 percent figure.
For China, the number stacks on an added 20 percent levy Trump imposed earlier this year over its alleged role in the supply chain of illicit fentanyl, taking the new additional figure to 54 percent.
Other key partners include India with a 26 percent added rate, South Korea at 25 percent and Japan at 24 percent.
Trump said: “For nations that treat us badly, we will calculate the combined rate of all their tariffs, non-monetary barriers and other forms of cheating.”
The numbers, he said, are “approximately half of what they are and have been charging us.”
– Exclusions –
Major US partners Canada and Mexico, however, are not subject to the new tariffs, White House officials said Wednesday.
Trump earlier imposed 25 percent tariffs on imports from both countries, with a lower rate on Canadian energy, and they will continue to face these duties.
But goods entering the world’s biggest economy under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement will continue to be exempted.
Should Canada and Mexico reach deals on the levies, however, they will still come up against Trump’s latest baseline rate.
The White House also said that the latest country-based tariffs do not stack atop of sector-specific ones, like those already applied to imports of steel and aluminum.
Cuba, Belarus, North Korea, and Russia are not subject to Trump’s new “reciprocal tariffs” as they are already facing sanctions which “preclude any meaningful trade,” the White House said.
– Other tariffs –
On Thursday, new 25 percent tariffs on imported autos and certain parts will also kick in, bringing fresh challenges to the industry.
Trump earlier imposed 25 percent charges on steel and aluminum imports too, which will now be expanded to impact canned beer and aluminum cans.
He has ordered probes into imports of copper and lumber as well, which could lead to further duties.
White House officials said Wednesday that the president is mulling similar moves on semiconductors, pharmaceuticals and possibly critical minerals.
Separately, a 25 percent levy on goods from countries importing Venezuelan oil can take place from April 2. Trump has threatened a similar “secondary tariff” on Russian oil.
– Small parcels –
On Wednesday, Trump ordered an end to a duty-free exemption for small parcels from China too, a move likely to severely disrupt the import of popular low-cost products.
The rule has faced heavy scrutiny as US officials pointed to the growth of Chinese-founded online retailers Shein and Temu as a factor behind a surge of shipments using the exemption.
Products imported under the “loophole” from China would now be subject to a duty rate of either 30 percent of their value or $25 per item, increasing to $50 per item after June 1.
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