Trump's top tariffs for 'worst offenders' take effect
- Published
US President Donald Trump's latest wave of tariffs has come into force, with imports from China hit by a 104% rate amid an escalating standoff between the world's two biggest economies.
Tariffs ranging from 11% to 104% now apply to imports from around 60 US trade partners, which Trump has dubbed the "worst offenders" for what he considers unfair trade practices.
China has since hit back by raising import duties on US goods arriving in China to 84%.
Markets across the globe lost trillions of dollars after Trump announced the new tariffs last week, with many Americans fearing price rises and some analysts predicting increased odds of recession.
On Tuesday, Trump accepted the fallout from the move had been "somewhat explosive" but said that money had been "pouring in" from the new tariffs so far.
Speaking at a Republican Party dinner in Washington, Trump acknowledged the 104% rate for China "sounds ridiculous" but insisted that Beijing wanted to "make a deal" to avoid it.
In a defiant speech championing his controversial trade policy, Trump said many countries had "ripped us off left and right, but now it's our turn to do the ripping".
"I know what the hell I'm doing," he told guests, adding that countries hit by his tariffs were "dying to make a deal".
But China on Wednesday said it would "fight to the end" if the US "insists on provoking a tariff war or trade war", and announced it would increase its own tariffs on US goods, effective from 12:01 CST (05:00 BST) on Thursday.
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Trump arrived at the 104% tariff for China, the highest for any country, after Beijing responded to an earlier rate with tit-for-tat tariffs of its own.
The US president unveiled an additional 34% tariff on Chinese goods last week, on top of a 20% levy he had put in place earlier this year. Beijing retaliated with a 34% tariff on US imports to China.
In response, Trump threatened an additional 50%, bringing the total to 104%, if Beijing did not back down. China did not change course, accusing the US president of behaving like a bully.
Just hours after the 104% tariffs from the US kicked in on Wednesday, Beijing announced it would raise its own tariffs on American goods from 34% to 84%.
Before this, during his speech on Tuesday night, Trump said China was hoping to reach an agreement with the US.
"They want to make a deal," he said. "They just don't know how to get started because they're proud people."
Analysts who spoke to the BBC were not so certain, with one saying Washington may be "overplaying its hand".
China's foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian on Wednesday said the US "continues to impose tariffs on China in an abusive manner".
He said China opposes such "bullying practices" and that America must show "an attitude of equality, mutual respect, and reciprocity" if it hopes to resolve issues through negotiation.
A white paper released by Beijing on Wednesday said China was willing to continue a dialogue with the US to resolve differences.
Watch: Trump says tariffs will be 'legendary' ahead of 104% tax on China
Trump said more than 70 countries have reached out to begin negotiations since the tariffs were announced.
"I'm telling you these countries are calling us up, kissing my ass," he told the audience at the dinner on Tuesday. "They are dying to make a deal."
Delegations from Tokyo and Seoul are en route to Washington, as import taxes of 24% for Japan and 25% for South Korea take effect.
The European Union, hit with a blanket 20% tariff, is "ready to negotiate" according to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
The bloc has offered a mutual reduction of tariffs on industrial goods to zero – a proposal that Trump has praised, while saying it was still "not enough".
On Wednesday, EU member states voted in favour of imposing tariffs on some US imported goods, with new tariffs set to come into effect from 15 April.
These tariffs specifically respond to the 25% import taxes Trump imposed on all steel and aluminium, which came into force in mid-March.
A statement from the European Commission said the bloc considers US tariffs "unjustified and damaging".
"The EU has stated its clear preference to find negotiated outcomes with the US, which would be balanced and mutually beneficial," it added.
Other countries on Trump's "worst offenders" list include Cambodia (now under a 49% tariff), Vietnam (46%) and India (26%).
Major market turmoil followed Trump's tariffs announcement last week, with sell-offs sparking trillions in losses across the globe.
After some signs of recovery earlier this week, losses continued across European and Asian markets on Wednesday, with London's FTSE 100 index opening 2.5% down and Japan's Nikkei 225 falling 4.3% after the new tariffs kicked in.
The past week's drama appears to have fuelled divisions within the White House, erupting in a feud between Elon Musk and Trump's trade adviser Peter Navarro, who the Tesla boss described as "dumber than a sack of bricks".
But Trump himself has remained upbeat, telling Republican Party diners on Tuesday evening that his tariffs were "going to be legendary, in a positive way".