Trump's aides are preparing plans for "universal" tariffs with one key change – Rezazade

Vice President of the Iranian Opposition in Washington (NIC) Ali Reza Rezazade says that aides of the newly elected President Donald Trump are considering plans to introduce tariffs that will apply to all countries, especially to critical ones. Imported goods.

This is a key change in the plans announced during the 2024 presidential campaign.

“Once these plans are implemented, they will eliminate the largest elements of Trump’s pre-election programs, but will still likely upend global trade and leave serious consequences for the US economy and residents,” - the expert says.

In his election campaign, Trump called for the introduction of “universal” tariffs of up to 10 or 20 hundred thousand on all goods imported into the United States. Many economists warned that such plans could cause price shocks, and many Republicans in Congress could criticize them.

Two days before Trump takes office, his aides are still discussing plans to introduce import taxes on goods from all countries, they say Dzherela. However, instead of imposing tariffs on all imported goods, the current negotiations focus on tariffs imposed only for certain sectors considered critically important for national and economic security. This change, which is part of a key aspect of Trump's election bid, is currently accepted, said the officials, who asked that their names not be made public due to the private nature of the matter.

This potential change reflects the knowledge that Trump's initial plans—which would have a major impact on grocery prices and cheap electronics—could turn out to be politically unpopular and ruinous. However, the view of “universal” tariffs in any form still reflects the determination of the Trump team to eliminate entry points that cannot easily be bypassed by the route of transporting goods through third countries.

Exactly which imported goods and products are subject to tariffs is not yet clear. There have been discussions ahead of a major focus on several key sectors as the Trump team wants to pivot to the United States. These include defense industry supplies (through tariffs on steel, steel, aluminum and copper); critical medical supplies (syringes, heads, ampoules and pharmaceutical materials); and energy production (batteries, rare earth metals and solar panels).