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President Donald Trump said on Monday the U.S. would impose a 25% tariff on imports from Japan and South Korea beginning August 1 as he unveiled the first two of what he has said will be a wave of letters to trading partners outlining the new levies they face.
"If for any reason you decide to raise your Tariffs, then, whatever the number you choose to raise them by, will be added onto the 25% that we charge," Trump said in letters to the leaders of the two Asian countries, which he posted on his Truth Social platform.
The rate for South Korea is the same that Trump initially announced on April 2, while the rate for Japan is 1 point higher than first announced. Trump a week later capped all of the so-called reciprocal tariffs at 10% until July 9 to allow for negotiations. Only two agreements have so far been reached, with Britain and Vietnam.
U.S. stocks fell in response, the latest market ruction since Trump unleashed a global trade war on his return to office in January. His moves have repeatedly roiled financial markets and sent policymakers scrambling to protect their economies.
U.S.-listed shares of Japanese automotive companies fell, with Toyota Motor down 4.1% in early afternoon trading and Honda Motor off by 3.8%.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier on Monday he expected to make several trade announcements in the next 48 hours, adding that his inbox was full of last-ditch offers from countries to clinch a tariff deal before a July 9 deadline.
It was not immediately clear if other letters to leaders would be made public ahead of Wednesday's deadline.
did not say which countries could get deals and what they might contain. Trump has kept much of the world guessing on the outcome of months of talks with countries hoping to avoid the hefty tariff hikes he has threatened.
"We've had a lot of people change their tune in terms of negotiations. So my mailbox was full last night with a lot of new offers, a lot of new proposals," Bessent said in an interview with CNBC. "So it's going to be a busy couple of days."