Former President Donald Trump announced plans to send official notices to more than 150 countries, informing them of possible tariff rates of 10% or 15% as part of his sweeping trade agenda.
“We’ll have well over 150 countries that we’re just going to send a notice of payment out,” Trump told reporters Wednesday at the White House. “The notice of payment is going to say what the tariff will be.” He added that the rate would be uniform for this group of nations, which he described as “not big countries” that “don’t do that much business.”
Later that day, in an interview with Real America’s Voice, Trump confirmed the tariff rate is still being finalized but “will probably be 10 or 15%.”
The move extends an earlier July 9 deadline by three weeks, giving countries until August 1 to negotiate better trade terms before the new duties take effect. Trump’s administration has recently stepped up tariff threats, aiming to pressure foreign governments into making trade concessions.
“For much of the world — and Asia in particular — which faces some of the steepest duties, the tariff announcement could be seen as a positive,” said Alicia Garcia Herrero, Chief Asia Pacific Economist at Natixis. “It gives smaller countries clarity and signals that Trump may recognize the disruptive impact of overly high tariffs.”
While the former president and his advisers initially sought multiple trade deals, Trump now appears to view the letters themselves as sufficient, calling them “deals” in recent remarks and showing little interest in drawn-out negotiations. However, he has left open the possibility of reducing rates if countries come to the table with offers.
So far, the proposed tariffs align with the rates Trump floated earlier this year—plans he later paused due to market concerns. However, the latest round of letters has rattled some financial markets and caught U.S. trading partners off guard, including the European Union, which had been working on tentative trade arrangements.
When asked about the EU, Trump said, “We could make a deal possibly with Europe. I’m very indifferent to it,” suggesting that sending a tariff notice was equivalent to making a deal.
As for Canada, which is facing a 35% tariff on certain products starting in August, Trump said it’s “too soon to say” what will happen.
