President Donald Trump on Monday announced the United States will impose a 25 percent tariff on imports from South Korea and Japan starting Aug. 1, part of the letters the administration is sending to trading partners.
"We invite you to participate in the extraordinary Economy of the United States, the Number One Market in the World, by far,” Trump said in a letters to both countries. “We have had years to discuss our Trading Relationship ... and have concluded that we must move away from these longterm, and very persistent, Trade Deficits ..."
Trump emphasized the 25 percent figure is much lower than what's needed to eliminate the "trade deficit disparity" and said there will be no tariff if products are built or manufactured within the U.S. If that is the route they choose, he vowed the U.S. "will do everything possible to get approvals quickly, professionally, and routinely – in other words, in a matter of weeks."
The president further warned that any changes in the countries’ tariffs will be met with an increase on the tariffs the U.S. will charge.
Later Monday, Trump also published letters to Malaysia, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Laos and Myanmar.
Goods imported to the U.S. from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and Kazakhstan are now set to face 25% tariffs, according to the letters Trump posted. South African goods will be subject to a 30% U.S. tariff, and imports from Laos and Myanmar will face a 40% duty, Trump’s Truth Social posts showed.
The letters are the first to be sent before Wednesday, the day his so-called reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries were scheduled to snap back to the higher levels he had announced in early April.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt suggested that 14 letters will be sent out Monday, with even more set for the coming days. She also said that Trump would sign an executive order to delay the Wednesday deadline until Aug. 1. (CNBC)
.@PressSec: "There will be approximately 12 other countries that will receive notifications and letters directly from the President... The administration, the President, and his trade team want to cut the best deals for the American people and the American worker." pic.twitter.com/Jqz67CrY8i
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) July 7, 2025