Donald Trump unveiled plans to step up his trade wars on Monday, but delayed tariffs hikes on goods from key economies until next month, amid widespread confusion over his controversial economic strategy.
The US president announced countries including Japan, South Korea and South Africa will face tariffs of up to 40% as part of a fresh wave of levies to kick in on 1 August. No increases will take place on Wednesday, however, after he extended a previous pause.
Posting copies of letters addressed to world leaders on social media, Trump announced:
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25% US tariffs on goods from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Kazakhstan.
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30% US tariffs on South Africa.
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40% US tariffs on Laos and Myanmar.
The White House confirmed he would also sign an executive order on Monday extending a 90-day pause for a slate of so-called “reciprocal” tariffs first introduced in April – in effect pushing back the deadline of trade talks back to 1 August.
The press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, did not specify which other countries would be sent letters but said in a press briefing that 14 countries would receive missives on Monday and more letters would be sent later this week.
When asked why Japan and South Korea received the first letters, Leavitt said: “It’s the president’s prerogative, and those are the countries he chose to be on a separate track.”
The president was “close” on other deals, she added, but “wants to ensure these are the best deals possible”.
Trump officials initially suggested they would strike dozens of deals with key economies by 9 July, but have since indicated that they would seek an extension to continue talks.
The letters to Japan and South Korea were largely identical and informed the leaders that there will be no tariffs if their countries “decide to build or manufacture product within the United States”.
Trump also threatened higher tariffs if the countries place additional tariffs on US exports. “If for any reason you decide to raise your tariffs, then, whatever the number you choose to raise them by, will be added onto that 25% we charge,” he wrote.
In a post on Truth Social on Monday, Trump also threatened an extra 10% levy on countries working with Brics nations (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) after the bloc’s leaders issued a statement on Sunday expressing “serious concerns about the rise of unilateral tariff” measures.
Trump initially announced a slate of so-called reciprocal tariffs in April, on what the White House dubbed “liberation day”, with some countries facing rates as high as 50%
The US has so far settled deals with three countries: the UK, China and Vietnam, and Bessent said there were over a dozen countries the US is still trying to negotiate with.
The new August deadline for countries without a deal amounts to a further three-week reprieve, but also triggers fresh uncertainty for importers because of the lack of clarity around the tariffs.
As the July deadline has approached, Trump’s officials have been racing to broker deals.
European Union ambassadors were briefed on Monday about a draft framework deal that seems to have been agreed over the weekend with the Trump administration. The EU will reportedly not receive a letter from the US setting out higher tariffs.
The White House reached an impasse in negotiations with Japan, despite initial optimism. Trump on Friday said it is “much easier to send a letter” and that the offers are “take it or leave it”.
On Wall Street, the benchmark S&P 500 sank by 1% after Trump posted his first letters.
Though the US stock market has largely recovered from the uncertainty around Trump’s trade war, the US dollar still remains weakened after months of trade fights. At the beginning of this year, the dollar had its worst six months in over 50 years, falling 10.8% since the start of 2025.
British steelmakers face a nervous wait to discover if they will be hit by US tariffs, after the UK government said it was trying to complete a deal to protect the industry from Trump’s trade war.
The US has set a 50% tariff on foreign steel and aluminum imports. While the UK has brokered a reduced rate of 25% and is trying to bring it down to zero, a deal has not yet been completed.
On Monday, Downing Street refused to confirm it was confident it could eliminate US tariffs on UK steel before Trump’s deadline. A spokesperson for No 10 said: “Our work with the US continues to get this deal implemented as soon as possible.”
