Category: Commentary

What happens when you threaten tariffs on countries? They start to back down.

Under Trump’s previous order, a 25% tariff was applied to all Mexican and Canadian goods that aren’t compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Israel: On Tuesday, Israel announced the cancellation of all remaining tariffs on imports from the United States. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that this move is intended to strengthen economic ties with the U.S. and lower living costs in Israel.

Vietnam: Vietnam has outlined plans to reduce tariffs on several U.S. products, including liquefied natural gas (LNG), automobiles, and ethanol. The tariff on American LNG will decrease from 5% to 2%, on cars from a range of 45%-64% to 32%, and on ethanol from 10% to 5%. These measures aim to lower Vietnam’s trade surplus with the U.S. and avoid potential U.S. tariffs. Below is what happened yesterday afternoon.

India: India is considering cutting tariffs on over half of U.S. imports, valued at $23 billion, to protect its $66 billion in exports from impending U.S. reciprocal tariffs. Negotiations are underway, with India indicating a willingness to significantly lower or entirely remove tariffs on many U.S. goods, contingent on the U.S. providing relief from the reciprocal tariffs.

Switzerland: Swiss Economic Affairs Minister Guy Parmelin emphasized that Switzerland has eliminated industrial tariffs, allowing almost 99% of U.S. goods to enter the country duty-free. This move is part of Switzerland’s efforts to avoid tariffs imposed by the U.S. under the new policy.