The White House confirmed on Tuesday that US President Donald Trump will impose new tariffs on Wednesday, though it provided no details about the size and scope of trade barriers that have businesses, consumers and investors fretting about an intensifying global trade war.
Trump has for weeks trumpeted April 2 as a “Liberation Day” that will see dramatic new duties that could upend the global trade system, with a White House Rose Garden announcement scheduled for 4pm Eastern Time (8pm GMT).
White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said reciprocal tariffs on countries that impose duties on US goods would take effect immediately after Trump announces them, while a 25 percent tariff on auto imports will take effect on April 3.
The Republican president has already imposed tariffs on aluminum and steel imports and has increased duties on all goods from China. But he has also repeatedly threatened to impose other tariffs, only to cancel or postpone them.
Leavitt’s announcement indicated that he plans to plow ahead this time. “The president has a brilliant team of advisors who have been studying these issues for decades, and we are focused on restoring the golden age of America,” she said at a press briefing.
Trump’s determination to press ahead comes amid growing indications that the broad uncertainty being generated by his extensive focus on tariffs is eroding investor, consumer and business confidence in ways that could slow activity and drive up prices.
Economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta said a recent survey showed corporate financial chiefs expected tariffs to push their prices higher this year while cutting into hiring and growth.
Hard details of what Trump will unveil on Wednesday remained unclear. According to the Washington Post, aides are considering a plan that would raise duties on products by about 20 percent from nearly every country, rather than targeting certain countries or products.
The administration anticipates the new duties could raise more than $6 trillion in revenue that could be sent on to Americans as a rebate, the paper reported.
Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal, citing people with knowledge of discussions, reported the US Trade Representative is preparing the option for an across-the-board tariff on a subset of nations that likely would not be as high as a 20 percent universal tariff option.
