Final Thoughts
President Donald Trump on Sunday hammered Colombia with 25% tariffs and threatened to increase them to 50%.
Trump in a post on Truth Social said he took the action not because of a trade dispute but because the South American nation had refused to accept planes carrying deported immigrants.
The president also cited “national security” concerns, just as he did to justify 25% Section 232 tariffs on steel in his first term.
Even the 50% threat echoes his first term. Turkish steel, like that of most nations, was assessed a 25% tariff in March 2018. Trump doubled Turkey’s tariff to 50% via a tweet in August of that year over a matter unrelated to steel.