The tariff confusion continues
America’s trading partners are lobbying the White House for exemptions to the tariffs taking effect Thursday, showing that “months of trade talks are far from over despite the run of agreements trumpeted by the White House in the past month,” says The Wall Street Journal.
The European Union, Japan and South Korea are among those that have made deals with President Trump, while behind the scenes their negotiators continue to argue their case with U.S. officials for further relief, the WSJ says. Key details of many of the agreements negotiated so far still aren’t finalized or in some cases are being interpreted differently by each side.
As more trade deals have been agreed on, more exemptions have been announced. For example, Trump signed an executive order last week implementing a 50 percent tariff on goods from Brazil, but major Brazilian exports including airplanes, some metals, fuels and orange juice were excluded. In all, the White House listed 694 exempted products, accounting for about 43 percent of Brazil’s $42.3 billion exports to the United States, according to the American Chamber of Commerce in Brazil.
“This confusion — and the president’s willingness to adjust tariffs spontaneously in pursuit of a variety of political goals — mean that uncertainty over access to the U.S.’s vast domestic market is becoming a key feature of the emerging economic order, with knock-on effects for business investment, hiring and prices,” says the WSJ.