US President Donald Trump Plans Uniform Tariff On 150+ Countries; Signals Trade Shift

US President Donald Trump revealed a plan to impose a uniform tariff on more than 150 countries and regions, as per a media report.

“Everyone in that group will be treated the same,” President Trump told reporters during his meeting with Bahrain’s Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa at the White House on Wednesday.

US President Donald Trump described the targeted countries under the new measures as ‘not big’ and said they ‘don’t do that much business’.

In April, the Trump administration introduced a standard tariff of 10 per cent on economies not covered by bilateral deals.

Although President Trump has previously indicated that he could increase the new baseline to 15 per cent or 20 per cent. He did not specify a new rate on Wednesday, Xinhua News Agency reported, quoting Politico.

However, the US government has already sent letters to about two dozen economies, including the European Union, Japan and South Korea.

The letters outlined the tariff rates that these countries will face starting Aug 1, the report said.

Following the announcement, negotiations intensified as trading partners sought more favourable terms.

Countries and regions such as Switzerland and India, which contributed more than 3 per cent to the US trade deficit in 2024, have not received official notice yet. and are still in negotiations with Washington.

President Trump made inconsistent remarks on Wednesday about US-India trade talks, first stating ‘we have another (deal) coming up,’ then later asserting ‘we’re very close to a deal’.

Regarding Japan, Trump said negotiations are underway but expressed doubt about the outcome.

Referring to a previously issued tariff notification, he said, “I think we’ll probably live by the letter with Japan.”

Also Read: US President Donald Trump Hints At Imminent US-India Trade Deal As Global Tariff Tensions Rise