By JOSH BOAK, Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that he’ll sign an order that increases U.S. tariffs to the rates other countries charge on imports.
“TODAY IS THE BIG ONE: RECIPROCAL TARIFFS!!!” Trump posted on his social media site, Truth Social. “MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
The prospect of a dramatic hike on tariffs could send shockwaves through the world economy, possibly depressing growth while also causing inflation to intensify. Trump has maintained that such tariffs will help to create domestic factory jobs, but most economists say they would effectively be a tax increase on U.S. consumers that would add to inflationary pressures.
The Republican president has openly antagonized multiple U.S. trading partners over the past several weeks, levying tariff threats and inviting them to retaliate with import taxes of their own that could send the economy hurtling into a trade war.
Trump has put an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports due that country’s role in the production of the opioid fentanyl. He also has readied tariffs on Canada and Mexico, America’s two largest trading partners, that could take effect in March after being suspended for 30 days. On top of that, on Monday, he removed the exemptions from his 2018 steel and aluminum tariffs. And he’s mused about new tariffs on computer chips and pharmaceutical drugs.
The European Union, Canada and Mexico have countermeasures ready to inflict economic pain on the United States in response to Trump’s actions, while China has already taken retaliatory steps with its own tariffs on U.S. energy, agricultural machinery and large-engine autos as well as an antitrust investigation of Google.
Trump has not specified how he defines the term “reciprocal” and whether his order would apply only to matching tariffs or to including other foreign taxes that he views as a barrier to exporting American goods.