The President-elect of the United States, Donald Trump, contradicted on Monday information published in a US newspaper that claimed that its advisers were exploring tariff plans that would only cover imports considered critical.
“The story in the Washington Post, citing alleged anonymous sources, which do not exist, incorrectly states that my tariff policy is going to be cut. That is false. The Washington Post knows it is false. It’s just another example of False News“the magnate wrote in a publication in Truth Social a few days after his investiture.
The Washington PostCiting three sources familiar with the matter, he reported early Monday that Trump’s advisers were exploring tariff plans that would apply to all countries, but would only cover certain sectors considered critical to national or economic security, in which would represent a marked change from the promises Trump made during the 2024 presidential campaign.
European exchanges and currencies had rebounded strongly on Monday after the newspaper information.
Trump, who will take office on January 20, had pledged to impose 10% tariffs on world imports into the United States, along with a 60% tariff on Chinese products, rates that experts say would alter flows. trade, would raise costs and provoke retaliation against US exports.
According to the newspaper, the plans are in the process of being drawn up and have not yet been finalized.
It was not clear to which sectors the tariffs would go.
Preliminary discussions have largely focused on several key sectors that Trump’s team wants to bring back to the United States, sources told The Washington Post.
“Those include the defense industrial supply chain (through tariffs on steel, iron, aluminum, and copper); critical medical supplies (jeringas, needles, vials, and pharmaceutical materials); and energy production (batteries, rare earth minerals and even solar panels), “said two of the people, according to the media.
Reuters reported last month that a Trump transition team document recommended imposing tariffs on all electrical battery materials globally in an attempt to boost US production and then negotiate individual exemptions with allies.
It asked to impose tariffs on imports of the “electric vehicle supply chain”, including batteries, critical minerals and charging components. The proposal Reuters had access to stated that the Government should use Section 232 tariffs, which focus on threats to national security, to limit imports of such products.
In recent years, the Department of Defense has highlighted America’s strategic vulnerabilities due to China’s dominance in the extraction and refining of critical minerals, like graphite and lithium necessary for batteries, and rare earth metals used in both electric vehicle engines and military aircraft.
Trump dismisses information about changes to its tariff plan only to critical areas