The country with the highest reciprocal tariff imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump is a little-known country called "Lesotho." Lesotho is a small nation located in southern Africa, and it has been hit with a staggering reciprocal tariff of up to 50% from the United States.
According to the "Annex" of the reciprocal tariff executive order released on the U.S. White House website on the 4th, the countries with the highest reciprocal tariffs imposed by the United States are Lesotho (50%), Cambodia (49%), Laos (48%), and Madagascar (47%).
Lesotho, which ranked first, is a small country surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. It has a population of about 2.29 million, and according to United Nations (UN) surveys, its gross domestic product (GDP) stands at $2.1 billion, ranking about 186 out of 212 countries as a poor nation.
This country primarily runs a trade surplus with the U.S. through diamonds and textile products, including Levi's jeans. According to Oxford Economics, the total exports to the U.S. last year reached $237 million (about 29 billion won), accounting for more than 10% of Lesotho's GDP.
President Trump explained that the reciprocal tariff is a response to "tariffs imposed on American goods" and "other non-tariff barriers," asserting that Lesotho imposes a 99% tariff on American products. For reference, the "formula" used to calculate the U.S. reciprocal tariff is half of the value obtained by dividing the trade deficit incurred in trade with the partner country by the amount imported from that country.
As a result, analyses show that relatively poorer countries have become the biggest victims of this punitive tariff. Reuters noted that countries like Lesotho and Madagascar (47%) that import only small quantities of American goods face higher tariffs than much wealthier nations.
Vietnam, where Korean corporations have a significant presence and is closely linked to South Korea's trade structure, faced a tariff of 46%, ranking "fifth" among countries with the highest reciprocal tariffs. China, which the U.S. primarily targeted, was hit with a 34% tariff, making it the 19th highest country among the 57 nations imposed with tariffs.
South Korea was imposed a tariff of 25%. Originally, the executive order's annex released shortly after the reciprocal tariff announcement noted 26%, causing some confusion, but it has been revised to 25%. South Korea ranked 35th out of 57 countries, lower than India (26%) but higher than Japan (24%).
The country with the lowest reciprocal tariff among the target countries was Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (11%). Chad and Equatorial Guinea (13%), Nigeria (14%), and Norway and Venezuela (15%) were also imposed relatively low tariff rates.