Bangladesh rethinking deal after blanket 10pc US tariffs

Bangladesh begins rethink on the deal signed with the United States as President Donald Trump lately imposed an across-the-board 10-percent tariff on all goods not covered by exemptions.

Reacting to the Supreme Court ruling invalidating his most sweeping duties, the US President announced a new temporary global tariff of 10 per cent for a period of 150 days.

In the Proclamation, he also announced that the 10-percent tariff will come into effect on February 24, 2026.

Talking to the FE Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Md Mahbubur Rahman said at the first time, under the reciprocal tariffs, different rates imposed on different countries, most of them each country having its own rate.

"At that time, our concern was that the higher rates compared to our competitor countries could put us at a disadvantage."

Currently, they are applying a uniform rate according to their own laws, the secretary said. "Now that a single, uniform rate has been established for all, we do not see any immediate problem."

Of course, any additional tax may create minor challenges for everyone, but overall it applies equally to all.

"I do not see any direct difficulties. In other words, our competitiveness compared to other countries is not affected. Nevertheless, we will monitor their consolidated position and react accordingly. No action can be taken before that," he added.

He also notes, "We will take decisions after consulting all stakeholders. A meeting with stakeholders is scheduled for tomorrow, and we have already had lengthy discussions on this matter today. After the stakeholder meeting, we will sit with key government authorities to determine our official position.

"Furthermore, since we were already engaged with the US administration and had signed agreements, there was coordination between us. They have always indicated that for those who were already engaged, their approach to tariffs would be somewhat flexible. We will continue to observe this.

"They have also offered us an opportunity -- if we produce products using US cotton or fibre, we can access the US market duty-free. We will continue to make efforts to maintain it."

Asked about the tariff conundrum, Centre for Policy Dialogue Distinguished Fellow Professor Mustafizur Rahman said usually it is assumed that there might not be major changes in competition due to the implication of additional 10-percent duty for all countries.

"But competition scenario will be changed as many buyers will try to absorb the additional duty in many ways, either transferring a certain portion on manufacturers or they themselves adjusting a part and might ask for discount," he explains.

"If the adoption is same for all, there would be no change in competition," he said further, adding that due to duty hike demand is expected to decrease as prices of products go high.

Terming the overall situation 'very uncertain', he said it is surely not 'good news' for Bangladesh and suggested keeping a careful eye on how competitor countries absorb the duty.

Explaining uncertainty he further added that US President through another power can impose country and product specific duty.

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