TARIFFS: Numerous Asian Countries To Be Hit Hard By US Tariffs

US President Trump announced reciprocal tariffs that will be a minimum of 10%, which was lower than feared, but some major trading partners will be hit badly. They are based on half of what the US faces including non-monetary measures, such as non-tariff barriers and currency manipulation. Of the 10 main providers of US imports, with the euro area counted as one, 7 are in the Asia region and merchandise exports are important to many of these economies. Trump said countries can reduce the penalty by cutting their barriers to the US. 

• The announcement included an additional 34% on China on top of the 20% already announced, which is the highest of all tariffs. China’s response will be watched closely. 13.4% of US goods imports come from China and they account for 14.6% of its exports in 2024 but only 2.8% of GDP. The impact on global growth of US trade policy may be more important to its economy and those countries that rely on it.
• Japan will face 24% on non-autos/parts and 25% on autos/parts (it is 2nd and 4th largest supplier respectively). This will hurt its exporting sectors but shipments to the US were only 3.5% of 2024 GDP.
• Korea is more exposed with exports to the US worth 6.8% of its 2024 GDP. It will face a 25% tariff. It is also the third largest supplier of imported private vehicles.
• Within Asia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Thailand and Malaysia are the most exposed and they will face significant tariffs which could hurt growth. Vietnam is one of the largest sources of US imports and production has shifted there from China recently but it is difficult to know how much is just passing through.

Exposure to US by country