US tariffs: which countries and commodities have the highest quotas?

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Trump’s tariffs have been an ever-changing influence on global trade through the year so far. The president has reverted, changed course, and ramped up tariffs so frequently in recent months, it can be easy to get left behind.

Trump’s tariffs hit the headlines on 2 April, dubbed ‘Liberation Day’ by the US president. They are, in effect, an attempt to reduce the US’s trade deficit and boost its domestic industry by placing tariffs on imported goods.

Initially, tariff levels appeared to be set according to the size of individual nations’ trade surplus with the US. As the tale has gone on, there has been much change in tariff levels, often based on the actions and responses of individual countries and regions. Tariff threats are also being used as leverage as the US negotiated trade deals with individual nations.

But some observers fear that tariffs could hurt the US economy.

“Tariffs affect the real economy via three primary channels: higher prices, tighter financial conditions, and uncertainty,” said Michael Pearce, deputy chief US economist at Oxford Economics.

As tariffs are effectively a tax on imports that are paid either by US businesses, or their customers if they pass these prices on, there is a fear that they could increase inflation in the US. Tariffs have ravaged the markets as investors try to unpick which industries will be most affected.

So which countries currently face the highest tariffs on their exports to the US?

Top 10 economies: latest US tariff rates

Here are the latest tariff rates faced by the world’s ten largest economies, as of 24 July.

^{Source: Oxford Economics}

European Union nations have been grouped, since all member states’ US exports will be subject to the same tariff regime.

We’ll dive into some of the more significant economies and commodities below.

What is the tariff rate on China?

Until 12 August, Chinese exports to the US are subject to a blanket 30% tariff, though export controls and additional rates apply to certain products.

Goods exported from the US to China are subject to a 10% tariff, again with some controls and additional rates in place.

Delegates from both nations are expected to meet in Sweden next week to discuss further progress on the US-China trade deal.

If no agreement is reached before the 12 August deadline, then the tariff rates would revert to 145% for US imports from China, and 125% for Chinese imports from the US.

China could also be hit by Trump’s threat earlier this month to impose 100% tariffs on countries that are buying Russian oil, his latest attempt to pressure Vladimir Putin into ending the war in Ukraine. China is a major buyer of Russian oil, alongside countries like India and Turkey.

What is the tariff rate on the EU?

As things stand a 30% tariff on US imports from the EU will kick in as of 1 August. But that could change if a trade deal is reached in the meantime.

Reports are emerging that a deal between the US and the EU that would reduce the tariff rate to 15% could be agreed soon. If so, it would mirror a similar deal struck between the US and Japan earlier this week.

Which goods and commodities have the highest US tariffs?

The country-level tariffs outlined above apply to all goods imports into the US. But some categories of strategically-important goods and commodities are subject to individual tariffs, regardless of their point of origin.

Some strategic goods, such as semiconductors, are currently exempt from US tariffs, though the administration has instigated investigations into implementing these. Pharmaceutical and healthcare imports, for example, could be subject to a 200% tariff rate.

Some commodities have also been subject to individual tariffs. Trump recently announced a 50% tariff on copper imports, effective from 1 August. Steel and aluminium imports are already subject to a 50% tariff from most countries, though in the UK’s case this is 25%.

What’s the latest tariff news?

The FT reports that Donald Trump is arriving in Scotland today (25 July) for a five-day golf trip and that prime minister Keir Starmer will lobby the US president for a reduction on UK steel import tariffs.

These currently stand at 25%, lower than the global rate, but Starmer hopes to push the rate lower.

Any deal is likely to be dependent on guarantees over the ultimate origin of the steel. The plant at Port Talbot is owned by Indian firm Tata Steel, and the US hopes to exclude steel melted and poured outside the UK from the deal.