Donald Trump Announces 26% 'Discounted Reciprocal Tariffs' On India

Washington: US President Donald Trump on late Wednesday night announced 26 per cent ‘discounted’ reciprocal tariffs on India (Indian exports) to the United States and 25 per cent tariffs on all foreign made automobiles, to reduce America's trade deficit with partner nations.

Apart from India, Trump announced reciprocal trade tax on a total of 133 countries including China 34%, Pakistan 29%, Japan 24%, European Union 20%, 10% on United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, and Saudi Arabia, Israel 17%, 25% South Korea, 32% Taiwan, 36% Thailand, 31% Switzerland, 32% Indonesia, 24% Malaysia, 30% South Africa, 10% Brazil, 37% Bangladesh , 10% Singapore among many others. 

Terming the reciprocal tariffs as his declaration of economic independence, Donald Trump announced a barrage of self-described reciprocal duties on trade partners who are exporting their products to the United States.

Trump's tariffs which he describes as a way to promote local manufacturing and revival of US various industries, will make it tough for Indian imports in America to compete with local products and raise risk of trade wars.

Foreign nations will pay to sell their products in biggest world market, says Trump

Announcing the reciprocal tariffs, Donald Trump in another statement said that foreign nations will finally be asked to pay for the privilege of access to their market which is the biggest market in the world.

The US President continued his address from White House Rose Garden and said that their country and taxpayers have been ripped off for fifty years but it's not going to happen anymore adding in a few moments he was going to sign a historic executive order instituting reciprocal tariffs.

Justifying his action of imposing reciprocal tariffs, Donald Trump said they do it to us and we do it to them.

"This is one of the most important days, in my opinion in American history. It is our Declaration of Economic Independence. For years, hardworking American citizens were forced to sit on the sidelines as other nations got rich and powerful, much of it at our expense... With today's action, we are finally going to be able to make America great again, greater than ever before...,” Trump said.

April 2 will forever be remembered as reborn day for American industry, says Trump 

Mentioning that April 2 will always be remembered as the day American industry was reborn, US President Donald Trump said, “My fellow Americans, this is Liberation Day, waiting for a long time. For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike. American steelworkers, auto workers, farmers and skilled craftsmen, they really suffered gravely. They watched in anguish as foreign leaders have stolen our jobs, foreign cheaters have ransacked our factories, and foreign scavengers have torn apart our once beautiful American dream...Our country and its tax payers have been ripped off for more than 50 years, but it is not going to happen anymore.”

“The United States charges other countries only a 2.4 tariff on motorcycles. Meanwhile, Thailand and others are charging much higher prices like India charges 70%, Vietnam charges 75% and others are even higher than that... Such horrendous imbalances have devastated our industrial base and put our national security at risk. I don't blame these other countries at all for this calamity. I blame former presidents and past leaders who weren't doing their job... Effective at midnight, we will impose a 25% tariff on all foreign-made automobiles," the US President said.

Addressing the nation, Trump further said that in the coming days, there will be complaints from the globalists, the outsourcers, special interests, and fake news but never forget that every prediction our opponents made about trade for the last 30 years has been proven totally wrong. They were wrong about NAFTA, they were wrong about China, they were wrong about the Trans Pacific Partnership. 

In my first term, they said tariffs would crash the economy. Instead, we built the greatest economy in the history of the world, US President Donald Trump added.