World War Fee US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced new tariff rates that reduce the import duties on goods from several major tech-producing nations.
The US announced its new trade policy on April 2nd, which Trump named “Liberation Day” because it introduced “reciprocal tariffs” that reflected the duties other nations charge on imports of US-made goods.
The administration suggested manufacturers outside the US establish stateside factories, the output of which would be immune to tariffs, to boost local employment.
The reciprocal tariffs affected several nations that host significant technology manufacturing industries.
Washington imposed 36 percent tariffs on Thailand, 32 percent on Taiwan, 25 percent on South Korea, and 24 percent on Japan and Malaysia. Rising tech manufacturing powers Vietnam and India wore import duties of 46 percent and 27 percent respectively.
The US later paused introduction of the tariffs until August 1st to allow time for further negotiations.
On Thursday, the administration announced its new tariff rates, which resulted in reduced tariff rates for tech-producing nations listed in the table below.
Nation
New tariff
↑/↓
India
25%
↓2%
Malaysia
19%
↓5%
Indonesia
19%
↓13%
Japan
15%
↓10%
South Korea
15%
↓12%
Taiwan
20%
↓12%
Thailand
19%
↓13%
Vietnam
20%
↓26%
The administration’s announcement did not include China, as talks between Washington and Beijing continue.
Malaysia’s Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry welcomed the tariff reduction, saying it was the result of “sustained engagement” with the US and “roughly tracks” rates imposed on imports from other countries in the region. The Reg has seen reports of similar responses from other regional governments, although few are entirely happy, as even these reduced tariffs are higher than import duties charged by the US before the second Trump administration took office.
The stated intent of the tariff policy is to encourage manufacturing in the USA, and therefore to grow employment in the sector, while increasing the federal government’s income, a combination of outcomes that President Trump says will see the USA enter “a new golden age.”
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