The President of the United States, Donald Trump, on Monday suggested that certain countries may receive exemptions when his administration imposes reciprocal tariffs on imports next week.
Trump disclosed this to White House reporters, ahead of his planned implementation of reciprocal tariffs on several countries on 2 April 2025.
Providing an update on the development, Trump said: “I may give a lot of countries breaks. It’s reciprocal, but we might be even nicer than that. You know, we’ve been very nice to a lot of countries for a long time.
“We may take less than what they’re charging, because they’ve charged us so much I don’t think they could take it. But it will be substantial.”
The president also signalled that additional tariffs on specific goods could be introduced as early as this week, citing automobiles, lumber, and semiconductors as potential targets.
Earlier on Monday, Trump announced that the US would impose a 25 per cent tariff on goods from any country purchasing oil or gas from Venezuela. According to him, the reciprocal tariffs are in response to concerns over an influx of alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.
Media Talk Africa reports that Canada, China, and European nations have been at loggerheads with the United States over an ongoing tariff war.
I may give lots of countries break – Trump doubles down on tariff war
