Trump announces steep tariffs on 12 countries

Former US President Donald Trump announced 25% import tariffs on goods from South Korea and Japan on Monday. He said the move is needed to reduce the trade gap between the US and these countries. Soon after, Trump also added tariffs on 12 more nations. These include Myanmar, Laos, South Africa, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Tunisia, Indonesia, Bosnia, Bangladesh, Serbia, Cambodia, and Thailand. Trump shared letters to the leaders of these countries on his social media site, Truth Social. In the letters, he warned that if they raise their own taxes on US goods, the US would increase tariffs even more. He said the US still wants to trade with them, but it should be “fair and balanced.” The new tariff rules will start from August 1.