Trump says he'll pursue 'reciprocal' tariffs in latest bid to decrease US trade deficit
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump says he'll announce a plan next week to impose "reciprocal" tariffs on countries instead of a "flat fee" in an apparent shift from the blanket tariff he's said he'd impose on other nations.
Trump did not offer many details on the proposal but said he would be meeting about it on Monday or Tuesday and would explain at a news conference thereafter. "It affects everybody," Trump said in the Oval Office.
He said at a Friday news conference that the tariffs would "mostly" be reciprocal, with the U.S. charging countries the same amount they're charging the U.S. "Because I think that's the only fair way to do it, that way, nobody's hurt," he said. "And I seem to be going in that line, as opposed to a flat fee tariff."
"I'll be announcing that next week – reciprocal trade – so that we're treated evenly with other countries," Trump said in the Oval Office earlier in the day. "We don't want any more, any less."
Trump offered the policy preview while hosting Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, of Japan, at the White House Friday. He said at a news conference following their meeting that the U.S. would work out its trade deficit with Japan with an agreement involving oil and gas without providing specifics. The U.S. had a trade deficit of $68.5 billion with Japan in 2024, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Before taking office, Trump said he'd put a universal tariff of 10 to 20% on every nation. Since his inauguration, he's floated various other options, including tariffs on pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, copper, steel and aluminum. It was not clear on Friday how his latest announcement would affect those proposals.
Earlier this week, he announced tariffs on Canada and Mexico and then halted them before they went into effect after reaching separate agreements on border security with both countries. Trump followed through on his pledge to hike tariffs on China by 10%, prompting retaliatory action and rattling businesses.
The U.S. president has been searching for ways to generate revenue for the U.S. and reduce its trade deficit with other nations, using tariffs at times as a blunt instrument to win foreign policy and national security concessions.
The U.S. had a trade deficit of $918.4 billion in 2024, the U.S. Census Bureau announced this week. According to the government agency, the trade deficit for goods and services grew by $133.5 billion from the year prior.
The U.S. had trade surpluses with The Netherlands, South and Central America, Australia, the United Kingdom and Hong Kong. It had deficits of $295.4 billion with China, $235.6 billion with the European Union, $171.8 billion with Mexico, and $123.5 billion with Vietnam.