United States President, Donald Trump. (@WhiteHouse/X)
United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a 10% tariff on all imports to the US and additional reciprocal tariffs for dozens of countries, including 30% for South Africa.
Trump said the reciprocal tariffs “for countries that treat us badly” were calculated by first adding together the tariff rates and any non-cash trade barriers—like currency manipulation—and then cutting that total in half.
“The tariffs will not be a full reciprocal. I could have done that, yes, but it would have been tough for a lot of countries,” he said.
He made the announcement just after 4pm in Washington – about 10.30pm South African time — from the White House Rose Garden, where he held up a chart showing the amounts each country allegedly levies on the US.
South Africa is shown as charging 60%, according to Trump’s chart.
“They have got some bad things going on in South Africa. You know, we are paying them billions of dollars, and we cut the funding because a lot of bad things are happening in South Africa. The fake news ought to be looking at it, they don’t want to report it,” he said, before continuing to name other countries.
After China, the United States is South Africa’s biggest trading partner.
Referring to the 25% tariffs on foreign-made vehicles and some automobile parts, which were announced last week, Trump said that in many cases countries which were regarded as “friends” were “worse than the foe in terms of trade”.
“Such horrendous imbalances have devastated our industrial base and put our national security at risk. I don’t blame these other countries at all for this calamity, I blame former presidents and past leaders who weren’t doing their job, they let it happen, and they let it happen to an extent that nobody can even believe. That’s why, effective at midnight, we will impose a 25% tariff on all foreign made automobiles,” he said.
The dozens of countries targeted with reciprocal tariffs include China (35%), Switzerland (31%) and the European union (20%).
Countries in Africa include Lesotho (50%), Madagascar (47%), Zimbabwe (18%) Mauritius (40%) and Botswana (37%). Kenya, Rwanda and Democratic Republic of the Congo all receive a 10% tariff.
Trump has said for weeks he would announce reciprocal tariffs on what has been dubbed “liberation day” for the American people.
Trump has accused the South African government of discriminating against white farmers and seizing “ethnic minority Afrikaners’ agricultural property without compensation” — a misreading of the recently enacted Expropriation Act.
In an executive order on 7 February, the White House said the US “cannot support the government of South Africa’s commission of rights violations in its country or its undermining United States foreign policy, which poses national security threats to our Nation, our allies, our African partners, and our interests”.
The reciprocal tariffs are set to go into effect on 9 April.
