Trump’s orders seek to address trade practices Washington considers unfair, but small businesses may be harmed and economists warn that it could drive inflation.
More than 60 countries have higher tariffs than President Donald Trump cleans.
The higher so-called “mutual” tariffs announced last week in the executive order were collected by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency from 00:01 EDT (04:01 GMT) on Thursday, following months of negotiations with key trading partners.
US duties range from 50% of goods from Brazil to 10% of imports from the UK.
Ahead of the deadline, Trump praised the “billions of dollars” that flowed into the United States as a result of an increase in duties. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said tariff revenue could exceed $300 million a year.
“The only thing that can stop American greatness is the radical left court that wants to see our country fail!” Trump wrote on his true social platform.
Imports from many countries were previously subject to 10% import duties after Trump suspended higher interest rates announced in early April.
But since then, Trump has frequently changed his tariff plans, slapping some countries at much higher rates, including 50% in Brazil’s goods, 39% in Switzerland, 35% in Canada and 25% in India.
Trump announced Wednesday that he would increase Indian tariffs to 50% later this month, unless he halts Russian oil purchases.
The US president says tariffs are a response to trade practices that Washington deems unfair. However, while some companies and industry groups have warned that new taxes will hurt American companies being small, some economists have warned that it could drive inflation and impact long-term growth.
In a report from Washington, D.C., Al Jazeera’s Alan Fisher said the tariff hike in Brazil is likely to affect the US coffee industry.
“Many (we) companies source coffee in Brazil, a small place (not just in large chains,” Fisher said.
The US has a trade surplus with Brazil, and many believe that tariffs are Trump’s attempt to punish Brazil for indicting his allies.
“Winners and Losers”
Eight major trading partners, which account for around 40% of US trade flows, have reached transactions with Trump, including the European Union, Japan and South Korea, with a base rate of 15%.
The UK agreed to a 10% rate, while Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan and the Philippines secured interest rates of 19 or 20%.
While Trump’s order specifies that goods determined to have been transported from a third country to avoid US tariffs will be subject to an additional 40% import duties, details regarding enforcement are unknown.
According to John Diamond, an analyst at the Baker Institute’s Tax and Budget Policy Center, tariffs can make us more affordable for our consumers with fewer product options and higher prices for those products.
“I think we see there are winners and losers, and we see there are a lot of inefficiencies in political kickbacks and political punishment against the enemy,” Diamond told Al Jazeera.
The US president also announced Wednesday that exemptions will be issued for companies that invest in the US, but will impose a 100% tariff on foreign-made semiconductors.
