U.S. President Donald Trump’s 90-day tariff pause expires next week—and his administration hasn’t notched too many wins on the deals front. In fact, his administration has unveiled just one trade deal with the UK ahead of July 9, when the U.S.’s so-called reciprocal tariffs are meant to return.
On Tuesday, Trump told reporters that he wasn’t interested in extending the deadline to allow for more time to negotiate, and will soon be sending letters announcing tariff rates “to a lot of countries.”
Still, administration officials have been publicly hopeful that they can unveil more deals in the coming days, with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggesting last week that there were 10 deals ready to go. (He did not specify which countries were ready to sign a trade deal.) Kevin Hassett, director of the National Economic Council, recently said that trading deals may be announced after the July 4 holiday.
On April 2, Trump slapped steep tariffs on the rest of the world, then paused them a week later to allow time for negotiations. U.S. trading partners have spent the past three months in frantic negotiations trying to get these tariffs reduced—but as of now, have little to show for it.
So far, the administration has agreed a trade deal with the UK and a “trade agreement” with China (which merely brings tariffs back down to their “Liberation Day” levels)
With just a week to go until tariffs return, here’s where things stand in Asia’s trade negotiations with Washington.
Japan
Talks between the U.S. and Japan have hit a roadblock: Trump’s imposition of a steep 25% tariff on cars. Japan’s car industry is the fourth-largest in the world, contributing nearly 3% of the country’s GDP and employing one in eight people. The U.S. is Japan’s largest car export market, buying up a third of its total production.
Auto tariffs are “not something we can accept,” Japan’s chief negotiator Ryosei Akazawa told reporters last Thursday. With no resolution on auto tariffs, Akazawa has said that negotiations “remained in a fog.”
Japan also faces a 24% tariff on all its exports, as well as a 50% tax on steel and aluminum.
Still, Trump seems particularly annoyed about Japan and its long-standing trade surplus with the U.S. On Sunday, Trump complained that the one-sided auto trade was “not fair,” suggesting Japan buy more U.S. oil to close the deficit gap. He repeated his complaints on Tuesday, calling Japan “tough” and “spoiled” to reporters.
South Korea
South Korea hopes to be exempt from all U.S. tariffs, including the 25% reciprocal tariff on its exports, as well as the 25% tariffs on cars and the 50% tariff on steel and aluminum.
Korea’s lead trade negotiator, Yeo Han-Koo, met with Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to start negotiations last Monday. All parties affirmed their commitment to reaching a deal soon, and acting U.S. ambassador to South Korea, Joseph Yun, said last week that a new Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the U.S. may be in the works.
Trade is the first major challenge to be faced by newly elected South Korea president, Lee Jae-myung, who took office earlier this month after a snap election. In his inaugural address, Lee called “rising protectionism” a “threat to our very survival.”
Korean negotiators don’t appear optimistic that they’ll meet the July 9 deadline, with a senior Korean official telling reporters on Monday that Seoul will try to seek an extension.
India
Both the U.S. and India had expressed initial optimism that they’d be able to reach a deal on trade, with India being one of the first countries to begin negotiations with the U.S. in April. Yet, as of now, no agreement has been announced. India currently faces a 26% “reciprocal” tariff on its exports to the U.S.
Indian officials are reportedly hesitant to lower their own tariffs on agricultural products, which would allow U.S. products into the market. Agriculture is India’s largest employment sector, with almost half of the population working in farming.
India also hopes to benefit from supply chains moving out of China. Companies like Apple and Foxconn are investing in Indian factories, both to diversify their supply chains and potentially avoid U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods. Yet Trump has criticized Apple’s attempts to make iPhones in India, instead demanding smartphones be made in the U.S.
Still, the U.S. president has said he remains optimistic that a deal is coming. On Tuesday, he suggested that the U.S. will soon be “able to go in and compete” in India. If New Delhi opens up its market, “we’re going to have a deal for much less tariffs,” he said.
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asian countries got a number of the steepest tariffs on April 2, with some reaching as high as 49%. Several countries in the region rely on U.S. exports for growth, spurring a rush by leaders to offer concessions, promising to increase their own imports of U.S. goods to try to get a deal with Washington.
Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh said last week that he was confident a “positive” trade deal could be made with the U.S. before the deadline. (Vietnam currently faces a 46% tariff on its U.S.-bound exports.)
Indonesia and Malaysia—which face 32% and 24% tariff rates respectively—have likewise expressed optimism that they can conclude negotiations before the tariff pause expires next week.
Thailand is less certain about the status of its trade negotiations. Thailand’s finance minister, Pichai Chunhavajira, arrived in the U.S. on Monday to begin talks in person, and has said that he hopes these talks will be extended past July 9.
Credit: Source link
