U.S. Begins Collecting 10% Tariff Under Trump’s Sweeping Trade Shift
U.S. customs officials started enforcing a 10% tariff on imports from a wide range of countries early Saturday, marking a major move in former President Donald Trump’s overhaul of global trade policy. The baseline tariffs—initiated at 12:01 a.m. ET—apply to goods entering through American ports, airports, and customs warehouses.
This shift signals Trump’s full departure from the post-World War II consensus on mutually agreed tariff structures.
“This is the single biggest trade action of our lifetime,” said Kelly Ann Shaw, trade attorney at Hogan Lovells and former White House trade adviser under Trump. Speaking at a Brookings Institution event on Thursday, she noted that these tariffs are likely to change over time as countries seek better terms. “It’s a seismic shift in how we engage in trade with virtually every nation on earth,” she added.
Trump’s tariff announcement on Wednesday triggered turmoil in global markets, erasing $5 trillion in value from S&P 500 companies by Friday—marking the steepest two-day drop on record. Fears of a global recession sent oil and commodity prices tumbling and drove investors toward safe-haven assets like government bonds.
Countries immediately affected by the new 10% tariff include Australia, the U.K., Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, and Saudi Arabia—even though many posted trade deficits with the U.S. last year. According to White House officials, those deficits would be larger if trading practices were more equitable.
A bulletin from U.S. Customs and Border Protection offers a 51-day grace period for shipments en route before the deadline. These must arrive by May 27 to be exempt from the 10% tariff.
More aggressive tariffs—ranging from 11% to 50%—are set to roll out this coming Wednesday. Imports from the European Union will face a 20% tariff, while goods from China will be hit with a 34% duty, raising the total new levies on Chinese imports to 54%.
China responded on Saturday, stating, “The market has spoken,” and imposed its own countermeasures, including a 34% tariff on U.S. products and restrictions on exports of select rare earth minerals.
“China has been hit much harder than the USA, not even close,” Trump wrote on social media Saturday. “THIS IS AN ECONOMIC REVOLUTION, AND WE WILL WIN. HANG TOUGH, it won’t be easy, but the end result will be historic.”
Later that day, Trump was seen at his Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Florida, holding a copy of the New York Post featuring a headline on China’s retaliation and the stock market’s steep decline.
