“Liberation Day”, in the words of US President Donald Trump, is coming. The White House will officially reveal a new tariff for both friend and enemy on April 2 4:00 pm Easter time In the garden of roses, while the president seeks to take revenge on what he sees abuse by trading partners in the United States.
Many of these trade partners in Asia, where governments are already trying to prepare for what might come.
On Monday, Vietnam – which has a large trade surplus with the United States – You will cut off Import duties on a group of products including cars, food products and liquefied natural gas.
Vietnam has benefited from re -equipping her supply chains for China; The country in Southeast Asia is now the third largest trade surplus with the United States, which it put on the list of countries at risk of sharp tariffs, Trump-Westwi, and Hanoi can make concessions proactively to avoid launching a trade war.
India also displays reducing import taxes on agricultural products such as almonds and cranberries, Reuters I mentioned Last week. According to the fact that the country of South Asia, which has a trade surplus of $ 47.5 billion with the United States last year, is considering removing some customs tariffs on the entire imported goods.
Trump complained about India’s tariff on American goods, which is higher than the United States imposes on Indian products. The American President of the Indian Hama Basem “”harsh“Even while he was praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“All countries”
Since his arrival in office, Trump has imposed an additional 20 % tariff on Chinese goods, 25 % tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, and 25 % tariffs on car imports.
There are no clear details about the upcoming definitions on April 2, such as the level of duties that will be imposed and what affected countries are. However, on Sunday, Trump suggested that a tariff will strike “all countries” as a starting point, which is retracting previous reports that new commercial measures may be more narrow in the range.
Several Asian governments adopt a waiting approach and vision in definitions before Wednesday.
American allies such as Japan, South Korea and Australia have tried to negotiate commercial issues with Washington – as is the case now, with little success.
In the middle of March, after failing to secure an exemption from the new customs tariff for the United States, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albaniz complained that this step was “against the spirit of friendship of our permanent countries.” Tuesday, his administration repeat They will not make concessions to the United States for a deal.
Japan and South Korea have pledged support for its industries in the event of new American definitions. “We are working on this without stopping, even on weekends,” Japanese Prime Minister Shigro Ishiba He said Tuesday. (The tariff for the new American cars pose a threat to Japan and the car sector.)
Then there is China, already subject to new definitions from the Trump administration. Beijing responded to new import duties with its own measures, starting with imposing revenge definitions and expanding the list of “unreliable entities”. Chinese officials said they are ready to fight “trade war, tariff war, or any other type of war.”
On Sunday, trade ministers from Japan, South Korea and China detained The first economic dialogue in five years.
Companies are also preparing
In addition to the definitions of steel, aluminum and cars, Trump promised new drawings on semiconductors and pharmaceutical imports as well.
Asian companies have also promised to invest in the United States in a possible attempt to avoid new tariffs and show support for Trump’s desire to restore local manufacturing.
In January, the Japanese auto manufacturer Honda pledged to increase its investments in three Oyeo car factories by 300 million dollars to expand its ability to build EVS and Hybrids and internal combustion engine vehicles.
In March, the semiconductor manufacturer in Taiwan (TSMC), the world’s leading company, has announced an investment of $ 100 billion to expand its operations in Arizona, over the next four years. (Taiwan government is also It is said Consider buying more American goods to reduce trade surplus.)
Last week, Hyundai, the South Korean auto company, promised to invest $ 21 billion in American manufacturing, including the 5.8 billion dollar steel factory in Louisiana.
However, the greatest promise comes from the Bank of Japan. Earlier this year, Softbank, in partnership with Openai and Oracle, promised $ 500 billion in new investment in the organization’s infrastructure with artificial intelligence in the United States.
This story was originally shown on Fortune.com
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