"Tariff Rate to Be Set at 15-20 Percent"
Trump Cites Limits of Individual Negotiations with 200 Countries
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on the 28th (local time) that the United States will impose a uniform tariff of 15 to 20 percent on countries that do not sign trade agreements with the U.S.
President Trump, speaking to reporters after a summit with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in Turnberry, Scotland, said, "Tariffs will likely be at the 15 to 20 percent level worldwide," adding, "It will probably be either 15 percent or 20 percent, one of the two." He also remarked, "I just want to be nice."
Earlier in April, President Trump announced a plan to impose reciprocal tariffs reflecting each country's trade barriers on all countries around the world, and is currently negotiating trade deals with each nation. As the tariff deferral deadline expires on August 1, negotiations with Japan and the European Union (EU) have been concluded, and tariffs on these countries have been set at 15 percent. Only the United Kingdom, with which the U.S. currently has a trade surplus, has been given the lowest tariff rate of 10 percent.
President Trump emphasized, "We will impose tariffs on the rest of the world," and stated, "If they want to do business in the United States, they have to pay the price." He further explained that it is inevitable to impose a uniform tariff of 15 to 20 percent, saying, "We cannot sit down and conclude 200 individual negotiations."
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