Trump’s top adviser says most countries currently have higher rates than US
A rally in Union Square, Manhattan, supporting transgender youth. Pic/AFP
US President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Monday that India has “enormously high” tariffs that lock out imports and that India’s prime minister had a lot to discuss with Trump when the two leaders meet.
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Trump believes the US should impose reciprocal tariffs that are at least equal to those imposed by other countries, Hassett said, adding, “If they go down, we’ll go down.”
“Almost every trading partner has much higher tariffs than we do,” he said, noting that Canada, Mexico and Britain had tariffs in the same range as the US.
As per news reports on Monday, Indian PM Narendra Modi is preparing additional tariff cuts in at least a dozen sectors, from electronics to medical equipment and chemicals, ahead of a two-day visit to Washington which begins on Wednesday.
Trump has previously called India a “very big abuser” on trade and urged it to buy more American-made equipment.
‘Gulf of America Day’
US President Donald Trump has signed a proclamation recognising February 9 as “the first-ever Gulf of America Day” after a recent executive order by him to rename the Gulf of Mexico. “We are flying right over it right now,” Trump said, sitting aboard Air Force One with a pen in his hand. “So we thought this would be appropriate. Today, I am making my first visit to the Gulf of America since its renaming,” he said on Sunday on his way to the Super Bowl in New Orleans, which sits on the gulf.
More import duties
President Trump said the US will impose 25 per cent tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, including from Canada and Mexico, as well as other import duties later in the week. He also reaffirmed that he would announce “reciprocal tariffs” on Tuesday or Wednesday, meaning that the US would impose import duties on products in cases where another country has levied duties on US goods.
Global markets affected
Financial markets fell after Trump first said he would impose the reciprocal tariffs. Stock prices also dropped after a measure of consumer sentiment declined on Friday. A survey found that Americans are expecting inflation to tick up in the coming months because of the duties.
Trump’s remarks stirred immediate worry from some global trading partners. South Korea’s acting president, Choi Sang-mok, called a meeting with the country’s top foreign policy and trade officials on Monday to examine how Trump’s proposed tariffs on steel and aluminum would affect its industries.
Officials discussed the potential impact and Seoul’s possible responses, but specific details of the meeting were not disclosed. The stock prices of major South Korean steelmakers, including POSCO and Hyundai Steel, dropped as the market opened on Monday.
Global shares were trading mixed on Monday. France’s CAC 40 edged up 0.2 per cent in early trading to 7988.29, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.3 per cent to 21,817.79. Britain’s FTSE 100 added 0.4 per cent to 8738.98. US shares were set to drift higher with Dow futures rising 0.2 per cent to 44,507.00. SP 500 futures gained 0.3 per cent to 6067.50.
In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 finished little changed, rising less than 0.1 per cent to 38,801.17. In currency trading, the US dollar rose to 152.41 Japanese yen from 151.39 yen. The euro cost $1.0321, down from $1.0328. Technology shares were among the gainers, as hopes grew for Chinese stimulus measures. China is retaliating with tariffs on select American imports and has announced an antitrust investigation into Google.
Penny production stopped
Trump announced that Washington DC will stop minting pennies, citing their high production cost, which exceeds their face value and termed the practice “wasteful”. On January 22, a post from the official Elon Musk led Department of Governmental Efficiency on X said, “The penny costs over 3 cents to make and cost US taxpayers over $179 million in FY2023. The Mint produced over 4.5 billion pennies in FY23, around 40 per cent of the 11.4 billion coins for circulation produced.”Agencies
4.5bn
Amount of US pennies minted in FY23
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