U.S. President Donald Trump's higher tariffs on imports from dozens of countries kicked in on Thursday, raising the average U.S. import duty to its highest in a century and leaving major trade partners such as Switzerland, Brazil and India hurriedly searching for a better deal.

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency began collecting the higher tariffs of 10% to 50% at 12:01 a.m. EDT (0401 GMT) after weeks of suspense over Trump's final tariff rates and frantic negotiations with countries seeking to lower them.

The leaders of Brazil and India vowed not to be cowed by Trump's hardline bargaining position, even while their negotiators sought a reprieve from the highest tariff levels.

The new rates will test Trump's strategy for shrinking U.S. trade deficits without causing massive disruptions to global supply chains or provoking higher inflation and stiff retaliation from trading partners.

'BILLIONS' IN TARIFF REVENUE

After unveiling his "Liberation Day" tariffs in April, Trump has frequently modified his plans, slapping much higher rates on imports from some countries, including 50% for goods from Brazil, 39% from Switzerland, 35% from Canada and 25% from India. He announced on Wednesday a further 25% tariff on Indian goods, to be implemented in 21 days over India's purchases of Russian oil, on top of the 25% already imposed.

"BILLIONS OF DOLLARS, LARGELY FROM COUNTRIES THAT HAVE TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF THE UNITED STATES FOR MANY YEARS, LAUGHING ALL THE WAY, WILL START FLOWING INTO THE USA," Trump said on Truth Social just ahead of the tariff deadline.

Tariffs are ultimately paid by companies importing the goods, and passed on in full or in part to consumers of end products.

Trump's top trade negotiator, Jamieson Greer, said the U.S. was working to reverse decades of policies that had weakened U.S. manufacturing capacity and workforce, and that many other countries shared concerns about macroeconomic imbalances.
"The rules of international trade cannot be a suicide pact," he wrote in a column published by the New York Times.

"By imposing tariffs to rebalance the trade deficit and negotiating significant reforms that form the basis of a new international system, the United States has shown bold leadership," Greer said.

Eight major trading partners accounting for about 40% of U.S. trade flows have reached framework deals for trade and investment concessions to Trump, including the European Union, Japan and South Korea, reducing their base tariff rates to 15%.

Britain won a 10% rate, while Vietnam, Indonesia, Pakistan and the Philippines secured rate reductions to 19% or 20%.

"There'll be some supply chain rearrangement. There'll be a new equilibrium. Prices here will go up, but it'll take a while for that to show up in a major way," said William Reinsch, a senior fellow and trade expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

Source: Reuters

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