Winners and losers from Trump’s new fees

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The last round of Donald Trump administration tariffs creates a fresh maze of rules for traders and places.

Here are some surprising and unexpected results from the US jump again to protectionism.

Asian countries get a double blow

Many of the highest rates of tariffs announced by Trump on Wednesday apply to Asian countries, with Cambodia facing 49 percent, Vietnam 46 percent, Thailand 37 percent, Thai 32 percent and Indonesia 32 percent, all more than the level of the 20 percent imposed by US imports, for example.

Uniting the misery for those nations, most of the exports of the region to the US will not be covered by the limited list of exempt goods announced by the White House on Wednesday.

Even if these exceptions – which include pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, timber and certain minerals – prove to be temporary, it sends a clear message to Asian countries that their main exports to the US are possible early victims of a new trading war.

The flat rate of the EU

The flat rate of 20 percent applied to the entire EU has created a curious model of winners and losers, depending on the individual trade of each Member State with SH.BA

In 2024, the US reported that its largest trading surplus in goods was with the Netherlands (55bn $), which receives the same tariff rate as Ireland – with which the US directed a $ 87BN deficit for the same period.

Nations like France, Spain and Belgium, with which the US leads the surplus or small deficits, can accumulate with the blanket, but 15 locations in the block would have received a higher fee if the rules were applied to the individual level of members.

This too shows only half of the story, as temporary exceptions to different products create a wide range of effective norms for EU countries.

Ireland’s concentration on pharmaceuticals, which have been temporarily excluded from tariffs, will maintain its effective rate of tariffs below 5 percent for now.

However, for Slovakia, additional tariffs like those Trump has presented in autos and car parts implies that its heavy manufacturing economy faces a very effective rate over the 20 percent title.

Friendly Fire – American Trade Excess also attract fees

Although Trump’s tariffs aim to target the countries with which the US has large trade deficits, the 10 percent minimum global tariff hits mainly countries with which there are trading surpluses.

According to its own trade figures, the US has a trade deficit with only 14 of the 122 countries given to them 10 percent.

The United Arab Emirates, with which the US has a surplus of $ 19.5 billion, Australia, with $ 17.9BN, and the United Kingdom, with $ 11.9BN, are the most striking of the “friendly fire” among this group, regarding their trading balance sheets.

Annual trade models may not be repeated every year

The so-called “reciprocal” tariff element was calculated using trade data from 2024.

In 2024, the US reported a 15 -seat deficit with which it had a surplus a year ago. In contrast, the US reported a trade surplus with 18 nations that led a deficit last year, leaving Kenya, for example, with only 10 percent.

For some countries, 2024 deviated many of the long -term trends. Namibia received a tariff rate of 21 percent after registering its highest surplus in more than a decade in 2024, despite a deficit in three of the previous four years.

And save an opinion on the 5,819 residents of St. Pierre and Friendly, who were briefly set to be hit at a fee of 50 percent, according to the initial figures issued by the White House. This rate was based on a very unusual 2024 for the French semi-autonomous territory overseas, which gained a trade surplus by turning a single $ 3.4m plane in the US

However, that high tariff rate was disappeared, with the time the White House issued its official executive order.