Brussels - Washington: Europe and the Arabs
Additional US tariffs on imports from dozens of countries took effect at 6:01 a.m. (Belgian time). These tariffs range from 15% to 41%, according to the White House announcement last week. The European Union has agreed to impose 15% tariffs on many products, with exceptions in certain sectors. According to Belgian media outlets in Brussels on Thursday morning, US President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: "Reciprocal tariffs are taking effect... Billions of dollars, mostly from countries that have benefited from the United States for years, will now flow into the United States." The website of the Belgian daily newspaper Nieuwsblad reported this morning that in Europe, Switzerland is being hit hard by a 39% tariff on imports. However, the Swiss are still trying to negotiate lower tariffs. Japan and South Korea, which, along with the European Union, are among the United States' most important trading partners, face tariffs of at least 15%. US President Donald Trump announced the imposition of 100% tariffs on chips and semiconductors at the White House on Wednesday. It is not yet clear when these tariffs will take effect. According to President Trump, companies that produce semiconductors in the United States or build chip production facilities there will be exempt from the tariffs.
Trump imposed additional tariffs on India as a penalty for its oil imports. Russia
Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he would impose an additional 25% tariff on India as a penalty for importing Russian oil and gas. These tariffs are in addition to the previous 25% tariff, which took effect on Thursday. The president said the additional tariffs will take effect later this month.
These sanctions combined will bring the total tariff on goods imported from the world's fifth-largest economy to 50%, one of the highest tariffs in the United States.