Trump imposes 30% tariff on Mexico and EU imports

US President Donald Trump announced a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU, effective August 1st, as reported by AL24 via Reuters on July 12th.

After weeks of negotiations with key trading allies such as Mexico and the EU, both parties failed to reach a more “comprehensive” trade deal. The new tariffs were announced in separate letters sent out on July 7th. The contents of these letters sent out by the US President were then posted on Truth Social on July 12th, announcing new tariffs for countries such as Japan, South Korea, Canada, and Brazil alongside a 50% tariff on copper.

The EU hoped that it would be able to reach a comprehensive trade deal with the US for the 27 countries that joined the EU. The European Union initially hoped to strike a comprehensive trade deal agreement that includes zero-for-zero tariffs on industrial goods. However, difficult talks with the US led to the realisation that it will probably have to settle for a temporary agreement and hope that a better deal will be agreed upon.

The 27 countries that make up the EU are under conflicting pressure as Germany urges a quick deal to safeguard their industry, whilst other EU members such as France urge EU negotiators not to back down and agree to a one-sided deal on US terms.

President Donald Trump’s tariff orders since his inauguration on January 20th have generated tens of billions of dollars a month in new revenue for the US government. US customs duties revenue broke past $100 billion in the federal fiscal year through to June, according to data held by the US Treasury on July 11th.

AL24 via Reuters, Maghrebi.org.