White House confirms tariffs announced on April 2 will “immediate effect”; influence of India and others | World News
Several countries, including India, are waiting, as U.S. President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs are about to be announced today. The White House said Tuesday that President Donald Trump’s highly anticipated tariffs will be earlier than some have expected.
It further stated that with the announcement of tariffs, Trump will seek to “resolve decades of unfair trade practices.” According to the White House, the White House will closely monitor and study tariffs around the world, including India.
President Trump has hyped the news as a “liberation day” but tried to reduce anxiety about it, saying tariffs would be “more tolerant” and “kind” than reciprocity. There is no detailed information on the breadth and scope of the upcoming tariffs.
“Tomorrow, the president will address decades of unfair trade practices that set our country apart and American workers lose their jobs,” White House spokesman Karoline Levitt said on Tuesday.
“It has hollowed out our middle class. It has destroyed our heartland and the president is focused on retransferring our global economy to ensure that the United States becomes the world’s manufacturing superpower again.”
“Of course, the president always has to make a phone call, always for good negotiations,” she further commented on the issue of negotiation potential after the announcement. “But he is very focused on solving past mistakes and shows that American workers are shaking.”
The report shows that the discussion among his aides focused on several options: a 15% tax on dirty 15-inch countries and entities, as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described, or perhaps a general tariff on everyone.
Notices in the Federal Communiqué have identified the targets of these countries and entities: India, Brazil, Canada, China, EU, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Turkey and Vietnam.
Trump told reporters on Monday that some countries have begun to place tariffs in an effort to expect the news, adding that India and Europe included. But, as the spokesman pointed out, the White House opened talks.
Trump first announced his intention to propose such a tariff regime at the inauguration to end the “destructive trade deficit”, after which he said it will take effect on April 2, rather than on April 1 before the meaning of “April Fool”. These tariffs will exceed Trump’s announcement on imports from Canada, Mexico and China, with the former at 25% and the latter at 25% and the charges for all imported cars and auto parts at 25%.
He has not provided clues on the upcoming tariffs or the size of the target country. But President Trump often mentions India’s tariffs, which he calls India “cruel” and a trade deficit. The U.S. trade deficit between the U.S. and India was $45.7 billion in 2024, a 5.4% increase ($2.4 billion) from 2023, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said.
The total commodity trade between the two countries is estimated to be US$129.2 billion in 2024. The U.S. exports to India were US$41.8 billion, up 3.4% (US$1.4 billion) from 2023, with the total U.S. imports from India totaling $450 million (US$3.7 billion (US$3.7 billion) and the U.S. imports from India totaling $87.4 billion.
India and the United States held trade talks amid expected reciprocity tariffs, but neither side revealed details. “I think it’s very good between India and our country,” he said on Friday when asked in particular about trade talks with India.
“I’m probably more forgiving than reciprocity because if I’m reciprocity, it’s going to be very difficult for people,” Trump said in an interview with Newsmax last week. He once again did not provide any details. “I know there are some exceptions, and it’s an ongoing discussion, but not too many, not too many exceptions,” the president added.
Speaking to reporters on Sunday he would “resolve” a plan that calls for new tariffs to be announced mid-week, which surprised some White House officials: If the president has indeed made a final decision on the tariffs, it has not been widely shared within the building.
It is unclear whether Trump plans to impose personal tariff rates on all U.S. trading partners, issue tariffs only on certain countries, or impose universal tariffs (perhaps up to 20%) in all imports. Trump’s advisers openly support Trump’s tariff agenda, but differ in the method and scope behind the scenes.
Meanwhile, Trump recently said he heard that India’s tariffs on U.S. goods have been significantly lowered. He said: “I think I heard that India was going to give up tariffs a lot a while ago, and I said, why didn’t anyone do this a long time ago?”
Asked whether his tariffs, which take effect from Wednesday, could prompt countries to align with China, Trump quickly said the tariffs would actually help those countries do better. He didn’t explain what that would be.
“No, I’m not worried. I think they have a chance to do better with the tariffs. It can actually help them in some way, and I think a lot of people will give up on the tariffs because they’ve been unfairly for years.”
The U.S. president said the EU has lowered tariffs on U.S.-made cars to 2.5%. “If you look at EU cars, the EU has already reduced tariffs to 2.5%. It was announced a few days ago that this is a small tariff alleged by the United States.”
Trump will launch a new tariff plan on April 2, which he called “Liberation Day” at his first Rose Garden press conference in his second term, CNN reported.
(with agent input)
