US President Donald Trump said Monday his administration will start imposing 25 percent tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods Tuesday, as he pointed out there is no room for the two countries to delay the planned duties.
During a press availability, Trump also reiterated "reciprocal" tariffs will start taking effect April 2, as he has been pushing to roll out new country-by-country tariff rates that will be pegged to trading partners' tariffs and non-tariff barriers in pursuit of "reciprocity."
Moreover, he signed an executive order to double the previous 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods, accusing Beijing of failing to help blunt the influx of fentanyl and other drugs from China to the United States, which he said constituted an "unusual and extraordinary" threat to America.
"Very importantly, tomorrow, tariffs -- 25 percent on Canada and 25 percent on Mexico ... That will start. So they are going to have to have a tariff," he said during a press event held to announce Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.'s plan to invest $100 billion to build chip manufacturing facilities in the US.
He also said there is no room for a last-minute deal to stop the tariffs' implementation.
"They are all set. They go into effect tomorrow," he said.
Early last month, Trump agreed to delay imposing 25 percent tariffs on Canada and Mexico -- with a carve-out for Canadian energy products to be taxed at a 10 percent rate -- for a 30-day period, as the two countries pledged to bolster their efforts to prevent drug trafficking at their borders with the US
South Korea has been carefully watching the tariff announcements as a large number of South Korean businesses are operating in Mexico amid fears that US levies on Mexico, if effectuated, will have an adverse impact on their businesses.
On the day, Trump inked the order to raise the tariff on Chinese goods by an additional 10 percent.
Asked how high he will go with the tariff on China, Trump said it depends on "what they do with their currency" and "what they do in terms of a retaliation."
"I don't think they're going to retaliate too much. Look, the US has been taken advantage of for 40 years," he said. "The US has been a laughingstock for years and years."
The president reaffirmed April 2 as the date for reciprocal tariffs.
The Trump administration has said it will customize reciprocal tariffs based on trading partners' duties, non-tariff barriers, exchange rate policies and other elements, such as their "unfair, discriminatory or extraterritorial" taxes, including a value-added tax.
Seoul is said to have underscored its position to the US that it aims to secure tariff exemptions first and foremost, and that if it fails to get exemptions, it hopes to at least ensure that South Korea is not put at a disadvantage compared with other countries.
Trump restated that to avoid a tariff, one has to build products in America, as he has been using tariffs to bolster domestic manufacturing, pare down America's trade deficits and address other issues, including the flow of undocumented migrants and illicit drugs.
"So what they have to do is build their car plants, frankly, and other things in the US, in which case they have no tariffs," he said.
Trump cast tariffs as a "very powerful weapon" to ensure America is no longer "taken advantage of."
"It's going to be very costly for people to take advantage of this country. They can't come in and steal our money and steal our jobs, and take our factories and take our businesses, and expect not to be punished," he said.
"They are being punished by tariffs. It's a very powerful weapon that politicians haven't used because they were either dishonest, stupid or paid off in some other form, and now we are using them." (Yonhap)
