Overview

• President Trump instructed the Treasury to defer the 10%–50% reciprocal tariffs to August 1 for an extended negotiation window
• The Treasury began sending 12-15 letters to major trading partners on Monday detailing impending duties and plans to issue around 100 notices to smaller economies
• Only the United Kingdom and Vietnam have secured exemptions by striking bilateral agreements, while the EU, China, Japan and South Korea continue talks under looming levies
• Letters posted on Truth Social outline rates ranging from 25% on Japanese and South Korean imports to 40% on goods from Laos and Myanmar, with duties set to vary by bilateral deficit
• The administration is targeting 18 partners accounting for 95% of the U.S. trade deficit and President Trump threatened an extra 10% surcharge on any country aligning with BRICS’ policies