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Trump issues 'take it or leave it' tariff letters to 12 nations as July 9 deadline nears
US President Donald Trump on Saturday said that he has signed letters addressed to 12 countries, dubbed 'take it or leave it', outlining the new tariff measures ahead of the July 9 deadline that will lift the 90-day pause on retaliatory tariffs. The letters will be sent to the recipients as early as Monday.
Speaking to reporters on Air Force One on his way to New Jersey for American Independence Day, Trump said, 'I signed some letters and they'll go out on Monday, probably twelve. Different amounts of money, different amounts of tariffs.' The president, however, refused to mention the countries the letters will be sent.
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In April, Trump announced a 10 per cent base tariff on most imports to the US, with rates potentially rising to 50 per cent for specific countries. These higher tariffs were paused for 90 days to allow negotiations, but the suspension is scheduled to end on July 9.
How are trade talks going so far?
As for India, Union Minister of Commerce and Trade Piyush Goyal has said that it will not sign a trade deal based on a timeline, but set its own terms to negotiate an agreement.
Earlier, sources had told News18 that the India-US trade deal will conclude in the next few days as an Indian delegation has returned from Washington after holding high-level talks with officials from the Trump administration.
So far, the Trump administration has unveiled deals with the United Kingdom and Vietnam, while Washington and Beijing agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high levies on each other's products.
Meanwhile, the US and Japan may not reach a trade deal at all, as Trump had said earlier this week, 'We've dealt with Japan. I'm not sure if we're gonna make a deal, I doubt it, with Japan. They and others are so spoiled from having ripped us off for 30, 40 years that it's really hard for them to make a deal.'
With inputs from agencies
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