The first wave of Trump's tax collection letter: 14 countries including Japan and South Korea range from 25% to 40%, and will take effect on August 1, and the EU may be close to the agreement

Source: Wall Street News

On Monday, July 7, Eastern Time, the first wave of tariff letters directly notified the tariffs.

First, Trump issued a letter to Japan and South Korea to notify new tariffs on the two countries. At the beginning of the afternoon session of the U.S. stock market on Monday, according to CCTV News, Trump posted a letter to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and South Korean President Lee Jae-ming on social media platforms, saying that the United States will impose a 25% tariff on all Japanese and Korean products starting August 1, 2025.

Then, according to CCTV News, the White House said on the 7th that 12 countries will receive letters about trade, and in addition to 12 countries, the United States will also send more letters, and stated that Trump will sign an executive order to postpone the deadline for tariff negotiations originally scheduled for July 9 to August 1.

Since then, Trump has successively announced the United States' tariff rates on 12 other countries. Starting from August 1, the United States will impose a 25% tariff on products imported from Kazakhstan, Malaysia and Tunisia, 30% on South Africa and Bosnia and Herzegovina, 32% on Indonesia, 35% on Bangladesh and Serbia, 36% on Thailand and Cambodia, and 40% on Laos and Myanmar.

Trump said that the above-mentioned new tariffs disclosed this time will be independent of various industry tariffs. Trump said in his letters to Japan, South Korea and the above 12 countries,

Any attempt to circumvent new tariffs through third-country transshipment will be subject to higher tariffs.

If companies in these countries choose to build factories or produce products in the United States, they do not need to pay this tariff.

If these countries decide to increase tariffs on the United States, the United States will add the same amount of tariffs on the basis of the existing new tariff rates.

According to CCTV News, a White House official said on the 7th that when asked about tariffs on Japan and South Korea, the United States will not superimpose tariffs on specific countries on industry tariffs.

Neither Trump nor the White House disclosed what tariff rates the EU will face. However, according to media reports, the EU will not receive a letter from the United States on raising its tariffs, and the EU is close to reaching an agreement with the Trump administration.

Some media also said that the EU is seeking to finalize a preliminary trade agreement with the United States, so that the US tariffs on the EU will be locked at 10% after August 1, so as to further negotiate a permanent agreement, and also seek to exempt the US from benchmark tariffs on European products mainly exported to the United States, including aircraft and alcohol.

Earlier on Monday, EU spokesman Orov Gill said that Europe and the United States are close to reaching a principled trade agreement. Portuguese Finance Minister Joaquim Miranda Sarmento said the agreement's tariffs could be below 10%.

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