Trump to raise new worldwide tariff to 15 per cent on all countries
Washington: US President Donald Trump said he would raise his new global tariff to 15 percent, just a day after ordering a 10 percent worldwide tariff following the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down the previous system of “reciprocal” import duties.
Trump announced on social media on Saturday (Washington time) that he would increase the new tariffs to 15 percent, effective immediately, “based on a comprehensive, detailed, and complete review of the ridiculous, poorly written, and extraordinarily un-American decision on Tariffs issued yesterday.”
The new tariff will begin on Tuesday (Washington time). This replaces the old system of 10 per cent duty on imports from Australia; This rate is actually the lowest among all countries.
Trump’s post on Truth Social did not indicate any exemptions for countries where the US runs a trade surplus, such as Australia. He said the 15 percent rate would apply to countries around the world, “many of which have ‘exploited’ the United States for decades without retribution.”
He added: “In the coming short months, the Trump Administration will identify and issue new, legally permissible Tariffs that will continue our tremendously successful drive to Make America Great Again, BIGGER Than Ever!!! Thank you for your interest in this matter.”
The White House has been contacted for more information.
The move came less than 24 hours after Trump was outraged by the Supreme Court’s decision to strike down his previous system of so-called reciprocal tariffs imposed on various countries using presidential emergency powers.
By doing this, Trump overstepped his authority as president; The majority ruled by a 6-3 decision because “only Congress” has the power to raise revenue by imposing permanent tariffs.
The new tariffs use a different mechanism, namely Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, which allows the president to impose tariffs of up to 15 percent for 150 days to address urgent balance of payments concerns.
The latest data from the Department of Commerce showed that the United States ran a trade deficit of nearly $900 billion last year.
More to come
Michael Koziol is the North America correspondent for The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald. He is a former Sydney editor, Sun-Herald deputy editor and a federal political correspondent in Canberra.Connect with: X or email.
