Washington, DC [US]: US President Donald Trump criticized India’s import duties on automobiles during a speech to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday (local time). He highlighted that India imposes auto tariffs exceeding 100% and announced that the US will implement reciprocal taxes starting April 2.
Trump stated that the US has been “ripped off for decades” by almost every country and vowed to end this trend.
“Under the Trump administration, you will pay a tariff and in some cases a rather large one. Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries. On average the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico, and Canada—have you heard of them—and countless other nations charge us tremendously higher tariffs than we charge them. It’s very unfair. India charges us auto tariffs higher than 100 percent,” Trump said.
He criticized the tariffs imposed by the European Union, China, Brazil, and Mexico, asserting that the US would impose similar tariffs based on how these nations treat American goods.
“China’s average tariff on our products is twice what we charge them. And South Korea’s average tariff is four times higher. Think of that—four times higher—and we give so much help militarily and in so many other ways to South Korea. But that’s what happens; this is happening by friend and foe,” he remarked.
Expressing concerns about unfair trade practices, Trump explained that the reciprocal tax would mirror the tariffs other countries impose on US goods.
“This system is not fair to the United States and never was. And so on April 2nd, I wanted to make it April 1st, but I didn’t want to be accused of April Fool’s Day… On April 2nd, reciprocal tariffs kick in. And whatever they tariff us, other countries, we will tariff them,” he added.
The President also outlined plans to counter non-monetary trade barriers used by other nations.
“That’s reciprocal, back and forth. Whatever they tax us, we will tax them. If they do non-monetary tariffs to keep us out of their market, then we will do non-monetary barriers to keep them out of our market,” he stated.
Trump claimed that these measures would generate “trillions and trillions of dollars” and create jobs in the US, emphasizing the need to correct what he described as decades of unfair trade practices.
Highlighting his administration’s achievements, Trump asserted that they have accomplished more in 43 days than most administrations do in four or eight years.
“Six weeks ago, I stood beneath the dome of this Capitol and proclaimed the dawn of the golden age of America… Our spirit is back, our pride is back, and our confidence is back and American Dream is surging bigger and better than ever before,” he declared.
Trump criticized Democratic lawmakers for their lack of support, stating,
“This is my fifth such speech to Congress. And once again, I look at the Democrats in front of me and I realize there is absolutely nothing I can say to make them happy or to make them stand or smile or applaud. Nothing I can do.”
He also highlighted his swift actions since taking office, including signing nearly 100 executive orders and taking over 400 executive actions.
“Over the past 6 weeks, I have signed nearly 100 Executive Orders and taken more than 400 Executive Actions—a record to restore common sense, safety, optimism and wealth all across our wonderful land,” he said.
Additionally, Trump declared a national emergency on the southern border, deploying military and border patrol forces to curb illegal crossings. He took a swipe at his predecessor, Joe Biden, labeling him as the “worst President in American history”.
“Within hours of taking the oath of office, I declared a national emergency on our southern border… In comparison, under Joe Biden—the worst President in American history, there were hundreds of thousands of illegal crossings a month,” Trump stated.
As the US prepares to introduce reciprocal tariffs from April 2, the global trade landscape is set to witness significant shifts, particularly in terms of US-India trade relations.