In April, President Trump announced a pause in the implementation of the country-specific IEEPA/Reciprocal tariffs. During this pause, a worldwide 10% tariff rate was imposed on all countries except China. Later, the country-specific rate for China was also paused for 90 days. The pause for all countries other than China was scheduled to expire on July 9, at which time many countries would face significantly higher tariffs.
Over the weekend, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated that the country-specific rates could take effect on August 1 for any countries with which the US has not reached a tariff agreement. This seems to stall the possible rate increases until that date. During this period, the White House will issue letters to some countries warning them of the pending threat of tariff increases. The President posted two of these letters on Truth Social, one addressed to Japan and one to South Korea. This is being done in hopes of hastening the pace of trade agreements. Currently, we have new tariff agreements in place with the UK, China, and Vietnam. The UK and China will see their reciprocal tariffs hold at 10% while Vietnam will see an increase to 20%.
During this extended time, it is certain that there will be significant changes in the reciprocal tariff rates. Many of which may remain at 10% though there have been some threats of even higher rates; however, only time will tell.
Best Regards,
Sam McClure, LCB
Director of Compliance & Customs Services