Per a published release by the NCBFAA, President Trump announced this afternoon from the White House Rose Garden the imposition of reciprocal tariffs on imported goods from numerous countries worldwide, which will take effect on Thursday, April 3rd at 12:01 AM EDT.

The President held up a chart outlining the countries of particular focus to the administration for the reciprocal tariffs, including China, the EU, Vietnam, Taiwan, Japan, India, South Korea, Thailand, Switzerland, Indonesia, Malaysia, United Kingdom, South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Singapore, Israel, the Philippines, Chile, Australia, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. President Trump noted during his announcement that the tariffs won’t be fully reciprocal. For example, China has an overall 67% tariff on US imports, and the US will respond with a 34% tariff, while the EU was noted to have a 39% average tariff on US goods, and the US reciprocal tariff will be 20%.

More details of the reciprocal tariffs are expected to be published shortly by the White House, as well as guidance from Customs and Border Protection (CBP) regarding their implementation. RIM will provide our clients with pertinent updates regarding these reciprocal tariffs from the White House and CBP as soon as they are received.

President Trump first announced his administration’s aim to impose reciprocal tariffs on February 13th. The goal of these tariffs, according to the White House, is to pressure other countries to either lower or eliminate their tariffs on US goods. The US has one of the lowest average duty rates (2.5%) on imported goods.

Today, the White House published in the Federal Register its proclamation related to tariffs to be imposed on automobiles and their parts. The 25% tariffs for passenger vehicles and light trucks will begin on April 3rd at 12:01 AM EDT, while the 25% tariffs for auto parts will take effect on May 3rd at 12:01 AM EDT. The proclamation includes details on the subheadings that will apply to these imports.  

On March 26th, President Trump announced that his administration would be invoking Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, which will impose a 25% tariff on imports of automobiles and certain automobile parts.

RIM will continue to closely monitor this evolving situation and provide updates as necessary. Please reach out to your RIM representative should you have any further questions.