President Donald Trump on July 11 appeared to leave open the possibility that USMCA goods will remain exempt from a higher 35% tariff on Canada that he announced the previous day.
The trade negotiation letters that have been coming out of the White House could chill potential dealmaking as countries see the lack of benefit in negotiating with President Donald Trump, according to former senior U.S. trade negotiators speaking during a panel discussion. Unimpressed by the pace and scope of current dealmaking, they argued that the breadth of areas that Trump wants to address with tariff solutions may weaken his ability to get what he wants.
The Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America publicized a letter they sent to the administration, pointing out that children's shoes already face high most favored nation duties, and asked officials not to stack a planned 20% tariff on those rates.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, as he attended the Association of Southeast Asian Nations conference in Malaysia, was asked by reporters how Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos, Brunei, the Philippines, Vietnam and Myanmar received the U.S., given the high tariffs the U.S. announced it will be imposing on those countries in three weeks.
House Ways and Means Trade Subcommittee Democrats jointly criticized what they called "ongoing trade chaos," and what they called secretive negotiations between the U.S. and countries under threat.
In a social media posting the evening of July 9, President Donald Trump wrote, "I am announcing a 50% TARIFF on Copper effective August 1, 2025, after receiving a robust NATIONAL SECURITY ASSESSMENT."
The Brazilian president hit back at President Donald Trump via X late July 9, after Trump said Brazilian goods should face 50% tariffs over the country's censorship of X and other American platforms, and partly because of the trial of former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro for an attempt to stay in power when the current president won election.
Canada will face a 35% tariff on Aug. 1, based on a letter posted by President Donald Trump on social media late July 10. “Goods transshipped to evade this higher Tariff will be subject to that higher Tariff,” the letter said.
The head of the trade committee in the EU parliament said one of the sticking points in the negotiations with the U.S. is whether 50% tariffs on steel and 25% tariffs on cars and car parts continue to be collected as the two parties move from an agreement in principle to a detailed agreement.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC July 8 that the Section 232 investigation and report on copper undertaken by his department is finished, and has been sent to the president, and that the proclamation will be issued within a day or two. He said a 50% tariff on copper-- the same as for aluminum and steel -- is "likely to be put into place the end of July, maybe August 1."