Trump tariffs: Govt analysing impact of 27% tariffs, says commerce ministry official

Trump tariffs: The commerce ministry is analysing the impact of the 27 per cent tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on India. According to a commerce ministry official, 10 per cent tariffs will come into effect on imports into the US from April 5, and the remaining 17 per cent from April 10. 

"The ministry is analysing the impact of the announced tariffs," the official told news agency PTI, adding there is a provision that if a country would address the concerns of the US, the Trump administration can consider reducing the duties against that nation. "It is a mixed bag and not a setback for India," the official said.

Meanwhile, India and US are already negotiating a bilateral trade agreement, with the two countries aiming to finalise the first phase of the pact by September-October. 

Trump, while announcing the reciprocal tariffs said that India charges them 52 per cent but they would charge a discounted rate of 27 per cent. Trump held up a chart to show the tariffs that other countries impose on them. 

“India, very, very tough. Very, very tough. The Prime Minister just left. He's a great friend of mine, but I said, ‘You're a friend of mine, but you’re not treating us right’,” said Trump. “They charge us 52 per cent. You have to understand, we charge them almost nothing, for years and years and decades, and it was only seven years ago, when I came in, we started with China and we took in hundreds of billions of dollars from China in tariffs,” said Trump. 

Speaking from the Rose Garden at the White House, Trump said April 2 or Liberation Day as he called it, would “forever be remembered as the day American industry was reborn, the day America's destiny was reclaimed”. 

Apart from India, US has imposed 34 per cent on China, 20 per cent on European Union, 24 per cent on Japan, 25 per cent on South Korea, 31 per cent on Switzerland, 10 per cent on UK, 32 per cent on Taiwan, 24 per cent on Malaysia, 10 per cent on Brazil, 32 per cent on Indonesia, 46 per cent on Vietnam, 10 per cent on Singapore etc.