Trump's latest tariff idea
US President Trump is planning new tariffs.
Commerzbank Economic Research
02/14/2025
Trump commissions "fair and reciprocal plan" on trade
Yesterday, Donald Trump commissioned a “reciprocal plan" from the relevant US authorities to restore “fairness” in US international trade and to combat “non-reciprocal” trade practices of other countries. The results of this investigation are to be presented by April 1. The results of an investigation in the reasons for the US trade deficits and possible remedies, commissioned on January 20, are also expected by that date.
Trump is concerned that some trading partners impose higher tariffs for certain product groups than the US. The following were mentioned in particular:
- The EU would demand a 10% tariff on the import of US cars, while the Americans would settle for 2.5%. What was left out was the fact that the US imposes a 25% tariff on the import of SUVs – the most popular vehicle among Americans.
- The US has a significant deficit in trade with the EU in shellfish: imports of 274 million dollars are offset by exports of just 38 million dollars.
- Trade in ethanol is also unfair. Brazil levies a tariff of 18% on this, while the US only levies a tariff of 2.5%.
The examples given mostly concern only relatively small trade volumes; overall, the US imported goods worth around 3.3 trillion dollars last year, 600 billion of which came from the EU.
For full text see attached PDF-Version.
