The Zhitong Finance App learned that according to people familiar with the matter, US President Donald Trump is preparing to impose new tariffs on products from dozens of economies by Friday. The move is aimed at ensuring that the temporary 10% global tariff can still be maintained after the expiration of the temporary 10% global tariff. According to reports, the tax rate for the new round of tariffs is between 10% and 12.5%.
The Trump administration proposed a new tariff of at least 10% on 60 trading partners last month on the grounds that these countries have loopholes in mandatory labor standards. People familiar with the matter revealed that the Trump team is preparing to implement tariffs by the end of this week, but it is unclear whether the final plan will deviate from the original proposal.
Trump's temporary tariffs expire on Friday. If a new round of tariffs is implemented at that time, the White House can avoid a gap between the two. The plan has yet to be finalized and is subject to change.
Earlier this year, the US Supreme Court rejected Trump's previous global tariff policy, and Trump then imposed a 10% global tariff.
The tariff is implemented in accordance with section 122 of the US Trade Act, which authorizes the President to levy a 10% import surcharge for up to 150 days to resolve balance of payments deficits. The US Court of International Trade also rejected the tariff, but the relief only applied to the plaintiff, and other importers were still subject to tariffs.
The November midterm elections are approaching, and Trump is increasing the tariff policy
According to reports, as the November midterm elections approach, Trump's push forward with the latest proposal will solidify his tariff commitments, despite voters' concerns about the cost of living.
Critics believe import taxes will raise the price of consumer goods, but Trump and other senior officials say tariffs are necessary to rebuild America's manufacturing strength and protect domestic industries.
This week, the US government promised to impose 50% tariffs on many Canadian goods, and the protracted trade war between the two countries escalated dramatically. Last week, the US imposed 25% tariffs on many Brazilian goods.
According to a proposal by the Office of the United States Trade Representative to resolve the use of forced labor in the production of imported goods, goods from dozens of economies such as Canada, Mexico, and the European Union will be subject to a 10% tariff. Goods imported into the US from other major economies such as China, India, and Japan will be subject to a 12.5% tariff.
US Trade Representative Jamison Greer said on Tuesday that the US government is expected to impose 10% to 12.5% tariffs on 60 countries and regions under section 301 of the 1974 Trade Act in the name of so-called “forced labor” to replace the 10% global import tariff which is about to expire.
Greer said, “We expect some action soon. I can't give a specific timeline right now — it's my responsibility to report back to Congress and other stakeholders before such information is officially revealed. But we do expect action in this area soon.”
However, a series of tariffs that may be triggered by another independent investigation into overcapacity are not expected to be implemented until Friday. A US government official said recently that the relevant procedures are still ongoing.
The proposed tariff collection plan will need to go through a formal comment period and hearing before it can take effect. This means that Trump's emergency tariffs will take some time to be fully re-implemented.
Furthermore, news of US copper tariffs once pushed LME copper futures close to 14,000 US dollars/ton, the highest level since the beginning of June. The US Department of Commerce was supposed to submit the latest proposal on copper import tariffs to Trump more than three weeks ago, but no final decision has been announced so far.