Inside Trump's tariff play: 'Liberation day' to target key trade partners

US President Donald Trump plans new tariffs on most imports under his 'Liberation Day' announcement on April 2

US President Donald Trump is set to introduce a fresh round of tariffs on the majority of imports as part of his "Liberation Day" announcement on April 2. This move could heighten global trade tensions, with the administration pushing for what it calls reciprocal tariffs — measures Trump argues are necessary to counter taxation and trade restrictions imposed by other nations, including traditional allies.  

 

"April 2 is going to be liberation day for America. We've been ripped off by every country in the world, friend and foe," Trump stated in the Oval Office last week. He added that the tariffs could generate "tens of billions" in revenue.

 

 

Trump also suggested there might be some room for adjustments regarding his broad-based tariff strategy. “I don't change. But the word flexibility is an important word,” he said. “Sometimes it's flexibility. So there'll be flexibility, but basically it's reciprocal.”  

 

Targetted approach to tariffs  

 

While fears of a full-scale trade war have unsettled markets, reports indicate that the upcoming tariffs may be more selectively applied than some of Trump’s previous broad-brush threats. According to Bloomberg, Trump plans to impose tariffs across various nations and trading blocs, with only a few exceptions. However, the White House does not intend to unveil additional industry-specific tariffs at the same time.

 

Since assuming office for a second term on January 20, Trump had already raised tariffs on nearly $800 billion worth of imports from countries such as China, Mexico, and Canada. These moves rattled financial markets, raised concerns about a potential US recession, and triggered retaliatory measures from affected trade partners.

 

Strategy behind reciprocal tariffs  

 

Bloomberg reported that Trump intends for the new tariffs to take effect immediately, a step that could put further strain on diplomatic ties and prompt retaliatory measures from affected nations.  

 

"Only countries that don't have tariffs on the US, and with whom the US has a trade surplus, will not be tariffed under the reciprocal plan," an official explained.   

Administration officials have acknowledged that not all countries will be targeted equally, and existing tariffs — such as those on steel — might not be applied cumulatively, which could ease the burden on certain industries. Initially, Trump had proposed a flat, across-the-board tariff but later refined his approach to include both tariff-based and non-tariff trade barriers.  

 

The exact list of affected countries remains uncertain, though Trump has frequently named the European Union, Mexico, Japan, South Korea, Canada, India, and China as key trade offenders.  

 

Identifying the ‘Dirty 15’  

 

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently suggested that steel and aluminum tariffs might not necessarily be layered on top of other country-specific rates. "I will have a better sense as we get closer to April 2. So, they could be stacked," he told Fox Business.  

 

During the same interview, Bessent indicated that roughly 15 per cent of nations — those deemed the most significant offenders — would face the harshest penalties. "It's 15 per cent of the countries, but it's a huge amount of our trading volume," he said, referring to them as the "dirty 15" and confirming they would be the primary targets.  

 

He further pointed to non-tariff barriers, such as domestic content regulations and product testing requirements, that he claims unfairly hinder US exports. "And they have substantial tariffs, and as important as the tariff or some of these non-tariff barriers, where they have domestic content production, where they do testing on our — whether it's our food, our products, that bear no resemblance to safety or anything that we do to their products," Bessent added.  

 

Trump's tariffs on India

 

Last week, in an interview with Breitbart News, Trump stated that he expects India to lower tariffs on American products. "I believe they're going to be lowering those tariffs substantially, but on April 2, we will be charging them the same tariffs they charge us," he said.  

 

Trump has frequently referred to India as the "tariff king," highlighting his concerns over the country's high import duties on American products. He has criticised India's average tariff rate of 14 per cent, which surpasses that of other nations such as China and Canada.

 

(With agency inputs)