Liberation Day – Reciprocal Tariffs LIVE UPDATES
Liberation Day, as it has been dubbed by the Trump Administration, has arrived. Today is the day the Trump Administration set for announcing and implementing reciprocal tariffs.
With these tariff hikes, the administration plans a country-by-country tariff raise to make U.S. tariffs match the duties and tariffs those countries impose on goods from the U.S. Except, President Trump has already said there would be leniency in the reciprocal tariffs, to a point many will be surprised. Not all countries are expected to see tariffs rise on their goods to nearly the level they impose on goods from the U.S.
Which countries will receive full reciprocal tariffs? Which will get partial reciprocal tariffs? Which might get no tariff hikes? How much will the tariff hikes be per country? What will the reactions to the new tariffs be?
These are the things we will be watching throughout the day. Then we’ll share updates here in this blog post.
News is going to start coming in hot as the president gets to specific tariffs the U.S. will charge in his speech. Here we go:
Come Back Friday
Normally, Universal Cargo’s blogs are posted every Tuesday and Thursday. We moved today’s to Wednesday to cover the reciprocal tariffs. We’ll watch countries’ reactions to the tariffs over the next couple days and plan to cover that Friday. Next week, we should be back to our regular Tuesday/Thursday schedule.
Companies Investing in U.S. Manufacturing & Infrastructure
President Trump listed companies that have already committed to invest in building plants and manufacturing (infrastructure is included in at least one of these investments in CMA CGM’s) in the U.S. in light of his administration’s tariff strategy:
Apple – $500B
SoftBank, AI, and Oracle – $500B almost immediately
Nvidia – hundreds of billions of dollars
TSMC – $200B (because of election November 5th and tariffs)
Johnson & Johnson – $55B
Eli Lilly – $27B
Meta – $500B
DAMAC – $20B
He listed off several automotive companies as investing billions and billions of dollars and being committed 100%.
For Countries that Want Exemptions
President Trump’s message for countries and their leaders who want exemption from these tariffs is to drop the tariffs and barriers of entry those countries have on American goods and spend tens of billions on U.S. goods.
Baseline Tariff
The president said beyond the specific tariffs mentioned, the U.S. will establish a baseline tariff of 10%.
Percentage Amounts
President Trump presented a chart of percentages for other countries, showing the combined amounts the administration found each to be charging on U.S. goods and the 50% the U.S. will impose in a tariff hike, starting tomorrow, on each of them.
Unfortunately, the bottom was obscured by the podium, making it difficult to read countries and their percentages at the bottom, so the finishing of this list will be a little bit of a work in progress, but I’ll get this published and keep working on completing it.
China – 37% tariff hike; half of their 67%
EU – 20%; 39%
Vietnam – 46%; 90%
Taiwan – 32%; 64%
Japan – 24%; 46%
India – 26%; 52%
South Korea – 25%; 50%
Thailand – 36%; 72%
Switzerland – 31%; 61%
Indonesia – 32%; 64%
Malaysia – 24%; 47%
Cambodia – 49%; 90%
United Kingdom – 10%; 10%
South Africa – 30%; 60%
Brazil – 10%; 10%
Bangladesh – 37%; 74%
Singapore – 10%; 10%
Israel – 17%; 33%
Philippines – 17%; 34%
Chile – 10%; 10%
Australia – 10%; 10%
Pakistan – 29%; 58%
Turkey – 10%; 10%
Sri Lanka – 44%; 88%
Morocco – 10%; 10%
Trinidad and Tobago – 10%; 12%
Nicaragua – 18%; 36%
Norway – 15%; 30%
Costa Rica – 10%; 17%
Jordan – 20%; 40%
Dominican Republic – 10%; 10%
UAE – 10%; 10%
New Zealand – 10%; 20%
Argentina – 10%; 10%
Ecuador – 10%; 12%
Guatemala – 10%; 10%
Honduras – 10%; 10%
Madagascar – 47%; 93%
Myanmar (Burma) – 44%; 88%
Tunisia – 28%; 55%
Kazakhstan – 54%; 27%
Serbia – 37%; 74%
Egypt – 10%; 10%
Saudi Arabia – 10%; 10%
El Salvador – 10%; 10%
Côte d’Ivoire – 21%; 41%
Laos – 48%; 95%
Botswana – 37%; 74%
50% of Full Reciprocal Amount
President Trump said that starting tomorrow, April 3rd, the U.S. will add up the combined rate of other countries’ tariffs, non-monetary barriers, and other forms of cheating they have in place against the U.S. and charge those countries a reciprocal tariff of 50% of that amount on their goods.
We will have to find out exact numbers, likely tomorrow or after, what those tariff percentages will be for each country. Hopefully, there will be publication that includes non-monetary barriers and “other forms of cheating” to see the monetary or percentile value the Trump Administration places on them.
Ban on Australian Beef
As of midnight tonight, the U.S. will be banning Australian beef, as U.S. beef is banned in Australia.
Auto Tariff
Effective midnight, the U.S. will charge a 25% tariff on all foreign automobiles.
4:07 EST Trump Steps to the Podium
President Trump came out to the podium at 4:07pm EST to talk about “Liberation Day” and signing an executive order for the implementation of reciprocal tariffs.
4pm EST Arrives
The time for the speech has arrived. News sources are broadcasting and streaming live, awaiting President Trump’s speech.
White House Published Article on Tariffs Today
Ahead of today’s reciprocal tariff announcements, the White House published an article about tariffs.
The goal seems to be to ease fears about and boost confidence in tariffs for the American people.
The article sites studies that show positive effects of tariffs, reducing imports from China on products and increasing U.S. production of them, as well as minimal and fleeting effects on prices. It even takes a moment to point out Former Biden Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen affirming that tariffs don’t raise tariffs. Such a stance from the previous administration makes sense as it did not remove President Trump’s first term tariffs and, in fact, added to them.
The article also takes time to point out “the media got it wrong” with quotes from mainstream news articles that predicted very negative results from President Trump’s tariffs during his first term that did not pan out when compared to measurable results, particularly those shared earlier in the article.
Again, this is not surprising to see in the article, as much of the mainstream media is currently criticizing President Trump’s tariff plan and predicting disastrous results.
Here’s the link to the White House article:
https://www.whitehouse.gov/articles/2025/04/tariffs-work-and-president-trumps-first-term-proves-it/
Time Trump Is Scheduled to Speak on Reciprocal Tariffs
President Trump is scheduled to speak on reciprocal tariffs today at 4pm EST or 1pm PST at the White House Rose Garden.
Previous Posts in the Lead-Up to Today’s Reciprocal Tariffs
The following articles are listed from most recent to least recent.
Reciprocal Tariffs to Be “Very Lenient” But Car & Parts Tariff Added
Low Freight Rates & Breaks on Tariffs
Looming Reciprocal Tariffs Spark Negotiations
The Best Countries for Sourcing Cost-Effective Products
Trade War with Canada Escalates – Steel & Aluminum Tariffs to Double
Shipper Alert! Trump Pauses Mexico Tariffs on USMCA Goods
New Tariffs Effective Today on Canada, Mexico, and China
Shipping News Roundup – Ship Fees, ILA Ratifies, & Tariffs
Shipper’s Questions About Trump’s Tariffs on China, Vietnam, & Indonesia
Steel & Stealing – Chassis Thefts at Port of L.A. & Trump’s New Tariffs
Trump Pauses 25% Tariffs on Mexico & Canada – Negotiation Leverage
