U.S. President Donald Trump’s country-specific mutual tariffs, which he had announced under the pretext of resolving chronic trade deficits, officially went into effect at 12:01 a.m. on the 9th (local time in the U.S. East Coast). With high tariffs being actualized on major trading partners, including South Korea, the chaos and sense of crisis in the global economy triggered by the 'Trump Tariff' are intensifying.
Following the implementation of a basic mutual tariff of 10% on the 5th, the U.S. began applying country-specific mutual tariffs ranging from a minimum of 11% to a maximum of 50% starting today. South Korea was included in the 25% tariff category, and ▲Vietnam (46%) ▲Thailand (36%) ▲Taiwan (32%) ▲Japan (24%) ▲European Union (20%) also faced high tariffs. In particular, Cambodia was classified as one of the 'worst offenders' with a 49% tariff.
China will face an even higher tariff of 104%. Although President Trump initially imposed a mutual tariff of 34% on China, he signed an executive order on the 8th to raise it by an additional 50 percentage points in response to China's retaliatory measures. This also includes an additional 20% tariff imposed under the justification of 'failure to cooperate in blocking fentanyl inflow.'
However, Canada and Mexico, which have free trade agreements (FTAs) with the U.S., were exempted from mutual tariff application. President Trump applied a 25% tariff on the two countries, but certain items remain duty-free under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Items that already had item-specific tariffs applied, such as steel, aluminum, and automobiles, as well as pharmaceuticals and semiconductors that President Trump had separately announced would be subject to tariffs, are excluded from this mutual tariff category.
The U.S. government plans to actively engage in tailored negotiations with various countries alongside the tariff imposition. The Trump administration has prioritized South Korea and Japan, its allies among nearly 70 countries, as targets for negotiation, including not only tariffs but also non-tariff barriers, defense cost-sharing, and other non-traditional issues in a 'one-shot negotiation.'
Although the administration intends to enforce so-called 'America First' policies, the gap between the solutions proposed by trading partners and the conditions demanded by the U.S. is significant, leading to expectations of difficult negotiations.
On the 8th, President Trump clearly stated his position regarding Israel, which expressed intentions to reduce trade surpluses with the U.S., saying "I probably won’t lower tariffs," indicating that he would pressure the counterpart in negotiations for additional concessions.
China is continuing its strong responses. China's Ministry of Commerce warned, "If the U.S. acts stubbornly, we will fight back to the end," and there is a high likelihood that it will immediately retaliate against the Trump administration's additional tariff measures.
The European Union has stated its position to negotiate under the condition of abolishing tariffs on industrial products such as automobiles, but it is preparing strong countermeasures in case the negotiations break down. Canada is applying a 25% countervailing tariff on U.S.-made cars starting today.
Since taking office, President Trump has imposed tariffs on certain countries and, starting from the 5th, has implemented a basic mutual tariff of 10% on all countries. This measure is an extension of that, aiming to expedite the resolution of trade deficits through differentiated tariffs by country.
Currently, the applicable item-specific tariffs are ▲steel and aluminum 25% ▲automobiles 25%, and President Trump plans to impose additional tariffs on pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, timber, copper, and others in the future.