Skip next section China exports rise by 7.2% in July despite US tariffs August 7, 2025
China exports rise by 7.2% in July despite US tariffs The introduction of tariffs on goods entering the United States this Thursday does not apply to China, as the country is on a different tariff timeline and trade negotiations are ongoing.
The US and China hammered out a 90-day truce in May that saw Washington reduce tariffs from 145% to 30%, while Beijing’s retaliatory tariffs on US goods fell to 10% from 125%.
US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the US was close to a trade deal with China. He even said he would meet his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, before the end of the year if an agreement is reached.
Meanwhile, China’s exports rose, 7.2% year-on-year in July, official data released Thursday showed.
US-bound exports fell 21.7% year over year as Trump’s reduced but still significant tariffs took effect. However, shipments to the European Union rose 9.2%, and exports to ASEAN countries increased by 16.6%.
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Skip next section Modi vows to protect farmers amid US tariff hikeAugust 7, 2025
Modi vows to protect farmers amid US tariff hikeIndian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he will not compromise the interests of the country’s farmers and fishermen.
“India will never compromise on the well-being of its farmers, dairy [sector], and fishermen. And I know personally I will have to pay a heavy price for it,” he said.
His statement comes after US President Donald Trump ordered an additional 25% tariff on purchases of Russian oil, raising the total tariff on Indian imports to the United States to 50%.
Modi did not directly mention Trump or the tariffs, but disagreements over opening India’s vast farm and dairy sectors were among the key reasons trade talks with the US collapsed.
Although Trump and Modi have a warm personal relationship, the US president has chided India over its purchases of Russia oil as the invasion of Ukraine continues (FILE: February 13, 2025)Image: Ben Curtis/AP Photo/picture alliance India’s foreign ministry officially described the new 50% duty on Indian goods as “extremely unfortunate,” adding that “India will take all necessary steps to protect its national interests.”
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Skip next section Swiss Federal Council to hold extraordinary meeting on tariffsAugust 7, 2025
Swiss Federal Council to hold extraordinary meeting on tariffsThe Swiss government will hold an extraordinary meeting Thursday afternoon, after its delegation to Washington returned from an attempt to avert 39% tariffs on the country’s exports to the United States.
“Tariffs: After its delegation returns from the USA, the Federal Council will hold an extraordinary meeting in the early afternoon. A statement will follow after the meeting,” it wrote on social media.
Earlier, Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter hailed a “very good meeting” with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, but there were no indications that the import tariffs would be reviewed.
Switzerland was stunned by Trump’s decision last week to increase the initially announced tariff from 31% to 39%.
The new rate, effective from Thursday, is much higher than the 15% tariff imposed on goods from the European Union.
The US is a leading buyer of Swiss watches, machinery and chocolate.
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Skip next section Trump’s latest round of tariffs take effect on dozens of economiesAugust 7, 2025
Trump’s latest round of tariffs take effect on dozens of economiesNew US tariffs ranging between 10% to 50% on dozens of trading partners have gone into effect, affecting imports from dozens of countries
The varied tariff rates apply to imports from about 70 countries.
The move is part of President Donald Trump’s plan to reshape global trade practices he considers unfair to the United States.
Just before the midnight start of the tariffs (Washington time), he wrote on his Truth Social platform: “billions of dollars, largely from countries that have taken advantage of the United States for many, laughing all the way, will start flowing into the USA.”
Trump includes major US allies and trading partners, among them the EU, Japan and South Korea, on that list. They will face a base tariff of 15%.
Some products from Brazil will be subject to duties of up to 50%.
Trump has emphasized the significant increase in federal revenue from import taxes. Those duties are paid by US companies that bring in goods and with analysts saying these tariffs will be passed onto consumers who purchase the final products.
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Skip next section WATCH: US tariffs put Indian garment jobs at risk August 7, 2025
WATCH: US tariffs put Indian garment jobs at risk The tariff dispute between the United States and India could escalate further as US President Trump ordered an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods and threatened to increase it over India’s purchase of Russian oil.
India has stated it will continue buying Russian oil and criticized the US and Europe for also importing Russian products.
The ongoing trade row is negatively impacting businesses in India.
Indian garment industry warns of mass layoffsTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
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Skip next section Taiwan’s says chipmaking giant ‘exempt’ from Trump’s 100% tariffAugust 7, 2025
Taiwan’s says chipmaking giant ‘exempt’ from Trump’s 100% tariffThe US exempted Taiwan’s chipmaking powerhouse TSMC from the Trump administration’s 100% tariff on semiconductor chips, Taipei said on Thursday.
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) is the world’s largest producer of chips and has Nvidia and Apple among its clients.
“Because Taiwan’s main exporter is TSMC, which has factories in the United States, TSMC is exempt,” National Development Council chief Liu Chin-ching told a briefing in parliament.
Not all Taiwanese chipmaking companies are exempt from the announced increase in US tariffs — some of them “will be affected” by the 100% tariff, but their competitors will also face the same levy, Liu said.
“Taiwan currently holds a leading position in the world, and I believe that if the leader and competitors are on the same starting line, the leader will continue to lead,” Liu said.
The statement by Liu came hours after Trump said that “we’re going to be putting a very large tariff on chips and semiconductors.”
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Skip next section Trump hints at possibility of more tariffs on ChinaAugust 7, 2025
Trump hints at possibility of more tariffs on ChinaPresident Donald Trump said the US could levy additional tariffs on China in line with 25% increase he announced for India earlier in the day over its purchase of Russian oil.
“Could happen,” Trump told reporters without providing details on potential tariffs. “It may happen … I can’t tell you yet,” Trump said. “We did it with India. We’re doing it probably with a couple of others. One of them could be China.”
Last week, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China could also face new tariffs if it continued buying Russian oil.
As trade talks continue with Beijing, Trump has placed 30% tariffs on goods from China, a rate that is smaller than the combined import taxes with which he has threatened New Delhi.
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Skip next section Trump says US to impose 100% semiconductors tariffAugust 6, 2025
Trump says US to impose 100% semiconductors tariffUS President Donald Trump has announced he plans to impose a 100% tariff on semiconductors, a move that would increase the costs of electronic devices.
“We’re going to be putting a very large tariff on chips and semiconductors,” he told reporters at the White House, adding that the level would be “100%.”
Trump added that the import tax would not be levied on companies that manufacture computer chips in the United States.
The announcement came as US technology giant Apple said it would add another $100 billion (about €85.8 billion) to the $500 billion it already planned to invest in the US, which Trump celebrated as the company “coming home.”
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Skip next section Brazil files WTO consultations request over US tariffsAugust 6, 2025
Brazil files WTO consultations request over US tariffsBrazil has taken the first step in a dispute settlement system within the World Trade Organization (WTO) over US President Trump’s hefty tariffs on the country.
In its request on Wednesday, Brazil said the US “flagrantly violates core commitments made to the WTO” by imposing the tariffs.
“The Brazilian government reiterates its willingness to negotiate and hopes that the consultations will contribute to a solution to the issue,” it added.
The dispute settlement system has been stalled since Trump’s first term in office.
The US president slapped Latin America’s biggest economy a hefty 50% tariff on over a third of Brazilian exports to the US.
Far from economic reasons, the massive tariff rate comes in response to what Trump has called a “witch hunt” against his far-right ally Jair Bolsonaro.
The former Brazilian president is on trial on charges of plotting a coup following his 2022 election loss.
Brazil slapped with 50% tariffs — who’s next?To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
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Skip next section What if India and China stop buying Russian oil?August 6, 2025
What if India and China stop buying Russian oil?China and India have replaced the EU as the largest importers of Russian oilImage: AFPDonald Trump is tightening sanctions loopholes that fund Moscow’s war machine.
What does a crackdown on Russia’s oil trade mean for global markets — and economic heavyweights like China and India?
DW has some of the answers here.
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Skip next section How can US-India ties recover from Trump’s tariffs? August 6, 2025
How can US-India ties recover from Trump’s tariffs? Modi visited Trump in Washington in FebruaryImage: Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty ImagesUS President Donald Trump’s pressure on India to halt its oil imports from Russia and comply with sanctions on Iran has strained ties between Washington and New Delhi, who have enjoyed a healthy strategic partnership for decades.
India has already said it saw the tariffs are “unjustified and unreasonable” and that it would take “all necessary measures” to safeguard its “national interests and economic security.”
Trump has claimed Indian authorities “don’t care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine” and are helping fund Russia’s war effort in Ukraine through their purchases of Russian oil.
The tougher rhetoric is a marked shift in relations between India and the US.
Ties have deteriorated in recent months, despite the display of personal warmth and symbolic friendship when Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with President Trump earlier this year in Washington.
Experts believes that despite Trump’s “intimidatory” approach, India “does not seek a confrontation.”
Read the full story on the tense relations between the US and India over Trump’s tariffs.
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Skip next section Swiss president hails ‘very good meeting’ with Rubio ahead of steep tariffsAugust 6, 2025
Swiss president hails ‘very good meeting’ with Rubio ahead of steep tariffsRana Taha
Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter said she had a “very good meeting” with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday, discussing the incoming US tariffs on Switzerland.
In the meeting, the pair “discussed bilateral cooperation between Switzerland and the US, and the tariff situation, and international issues,” Karin-Sutter said.
“We had a very friendly and open exchange,” Keller-Sutter told reporters after the meeting in Washington, yet stopped short of mentioning whether it would help the country avert the 39% tariff set to come into effect on Thursday.
A US State Department spokeswoman said the talks included “the importance of a fair and balanced trade relationship that benefits the American people.”
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Skip next section Which tariffs exactly are going into effect on August 7?August 6, 2025
Which tariffs exactly are going into effect on August 7?Rana Taha
On July 31 last week, Trump announced a new set of “reciprocal tariffs,” affecting some 67 countries. The levies, due to kick in on August 7, include a 10% so-called baseline tariff on countries where the US sells more products than it imports.
The US president argued in a White House statement that “conditions reflected in large and persistent annual US goods trade deficits constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and economy of the US that has its source in whole or substantial part outside the US.”
Leading trading partners including the European Union, Japan and South Korea will be subject to a 15% tariff. All are engaged in trade negotiations with Washington.
Countries which meanwhile reached tentative trade agreements with the US, such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Indonesia, will be subject to tariffs ranging from 19% to 20%.
Much higher rates will fall on smaller economies such as Syria (41%, the highest on the list), which is just getting out of a civil war which spanned over a decade. Myanmar (40%), is still grappling with a civil war.
Similar rates will also be applied to Laos (40%) and Iraq (35%).
Despite being a significant trading partner, Switzerland is set to face a whopping 39% tariff.
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Skip next section What could the tariffs mean for India?August 6, 2025
What could the tariffs mean for India?The latest tariff announcement means India is facing the highest US levy along with Brazil.
This could put New Delhi at a significant disadvantage, particularly against regional competitors such as Vietnam and Bangladesh.
The move could also shatter India’s image as an alternative for US companies to Chinese manufacturing.
Trump had already criticized tech giant Apple for its efforts to shift iPhone production to India to avoid the tariffs that had been planned for China.
“I don’t want you building in India,” Trump said he told Apple CEO Tim Cook earlier this year.
However, smartphones are on a list of exempted products for now, shielding Apple from a major hit, even as it moves production from China to India.
On Wednesday, Trump is expected to celebrate a commitment by Apple to increase its US investments by an additional $100 billion over the next four years.
Other exemptions include goods targeted under sector-specific tariffs such as steel and aluminum, and sectors that could be hit later, such as pharmaceuticals and semiconductors.
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Skip next section India reacts to latest Trump tariff announcementAugust 6, 2025
India reacts to latest Trump tariff announcement India’s government spokesperson has defended New Delhi’s purchase of Russian oil, saying that “imports are based on market factors and done with the overall objective of ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion people of India.”
“It is therefore extremely unfortunate that the US should choose to impose additional tariffs on India for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
“We reiterate that these actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable. India will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests.”
Trump’s tariff threats: Using trade as a weapon?To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
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