Trump slaps 25% tariffs on Japan, South Korea, 5 more countries

US President Donald Trump on Monday said he would impose a 25 per cent tariff on goods from Japan and South Korea starting on August 1,stressing that the rates are "far less" than what is needed to eliminate the "trade deficit" between the US and them. Hours later, Trump imposed steep tariffs on five additional countries -- Myanmar, Laos, South Africa, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia -- as part of his ongoing effort to correct trade imbalances. Trump announced on his Truth Social platform, rolling out letters with Korea and Japan being among the first ones to receive them.

Trump to slap TARIFF of ‘only’ 25% on Japan and South Korea from August 1 pic.twitter.com/1nwryMxz7I

— RT (@RT_com) July 7, 2025

Just hours after his initial announcement, Trump imposed steep tariffs on five countries -- Myanmar, Laos, South Africa, Kazakhstan, and Malaysia -- as part of his push to correct trade imbalances. The announcement was made through a series posts on his social media platform.

Myanmar — 40%

Laos — 40%

South Africa — 30%

Kazakhstan — 25%

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said there would be a number of deals coming up. "We are going to have several announcements in the next 48 hours," Bessent told CNBC in an interview Monday. "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.