Japan, South Korea face 25% tariffs as Trump ramps up trade war • FRANCE 24 English
Now, Japan and South Korea, the two top countries, preparing them for 25% new tariffs on goods in the US from the 1st of August after a new announcement from the US President Donald Trump. The move hitting the markets, though markets in Asia, taking the news a little more in their stride. And all 14 countries are targeted, including as well Serbia, Thailand, and Chunisia with warnings that other countries may still be targeted before the end of the month. We’re going to cross to Hong Kong, talk to our correspondent, Cammy Nelle, who joins us from there. Cami, how are these new tariffs then being seen across Asia? So, we’ve got two things going on here, Stuart. First off, we’ve got the market reaction, which on the whole is pretty positive, and the political reaction, which is a little bit more downbeat. So, markets first off, uh, for example, here in Hong Kong, Hansen closed at over a percentage point. Uh and then we’ve also got markets where there’s been either no news or a little bit of bad news. So we’ve seen Thailand stock exchange dip. Uh we also saw India’s stock exchange dip. That’s because India didn’t get a letter and one thing that investors could be rattled by is lack of certainty. Uh it has picked up since. We’ve also got then uh the Cosby which had the strongest gains of the day. the biggest winner that uh is at over almost 2% uh 1.8 but uh South Korea is getting tariffs of 25% as per that letter from the United States. South Korea’s president is in talks with officials to try and broker a better deal than that. Um, South Korean officials have also said that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has agreed to have a summit to try and move those negotiations forward and that it is possible but difficult within the 3-week time frame to try and get something better. So, they do have one of the best deals. So does Japan also 25%. But Japan’s prime minister um also called the deal that he currently has as regrettable. So while the markets seem to be fairing a little bit better than the political sentiment, definitely politicians here are worried, especially Japan and South Korea who are some of the strongest allies that the United States has in the region and could have expected to see something a little bit better than what they’ve got. Of course, the big one really um if you like Cami, is still China. Tariffs are remaining high on China, not mentioned in this tranch at the moment, even though Trump last month held their excellent relationship and China’s now warning, isn’t it, the US not to impose any new tariffs? Yes. So, in Chinese state media, um, People’s Daily, uh, we’ve got an article published on Tuesday that said reiterating that Beijing would take action if these flurry of new deals that are coming out undermine China’s interest. Now what China means by that is the type of deal that we’ve seen with Vietnam. So Washington wants to prevent transshipping. That’s when, for example, China exports something to Vietnam. Vietnam uses that to create something in Vietnam and then exports it under the label made in Vietnam. Washington has said those types of products will be whacked with a 40% tariff as opposed to a 20% tariff. Beijing’s obviously upset about that because that is actively undermining its own economic interests in other countries. What they mean by taking action, I mean, we’ve seen what that means. So Beijing hasn’t come out and said it, but rare earth minerals clearly have been central throughout the trade war and Beijing has shown throughout the discussions with the United States that it can and will deploy its trump card so to speak with devastating effect because it’s not just the United States that’s impacted when Beijing turns off the taps. It’s also Europe. It’s countries around the world. There were automakers in Europe that temporarily had to shut down their facilities last time Beijing tightened its grip on its rare earth exports. And Beijing has been hedging its bets. It’s been very careful to say that it will continue its exports according to its own laws. So, it actually hasn’t really promised very
U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday ramped up his trade war telling 14 nations, from powerhouse suppliers such as Japan and South Korea to minor trade players, that they now face sharply higher tariffs from a new deadline of August 1. France 24’s Camille Nedelec reports on the reaction from Asia.
#tariffs #Trump #Asia
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7 Comments
At this point, every time he causes more chaos within the US, I celebrate because it distracts him from making more chaos outside the US. 😄
FROM U.S TAXPAYERS THIS WILL BE GREAT TRIAL RUN SEE HOW IT WORKS AWHILE.
This will help US get money for US troops there.
WELL U.S. CAN LIVE WITHOUT RARE EARTHS. DID SINCE BEGINNING OF TIME.
US SHOULD NEVER BE CONTROLLED BY OTHER COUNTRIES PERIOD. ADJUST.
Both Korea and Japan just signed deals with Canada to purchase LNG . This stops them from buying LNG for the U.S. , I would think this might have something to do with it . Trump is pissed other countries would dare buy from some one other then the U.S.
President Trump. Aren't South Korea and the United States allies made out of blood? Aren't the U.S. militaries stationed in South Korea for geopolitical reasons? They are earning foreign currency by stationed in South Korea. They are asking for an increase in defense costs. I will defend the Republic of Korea often. Defense expenses. I have no additional money. I will defend often. I would appreciate it if you could withdraw all the U.S. troops. No matter how much money you have, it's not like that. I'm sure the U.S. military is against withdrawing from South Korea, so don't live like a maverick. President Trump.