Trump reiterates benchmark tariff of 10%, does not rule out individual exemptions

President Donald Trump said on Friday that he would "always" impose tariffs of at least 10 per cent on trading partners, but then added that "exceptions are not ruled out", underscoring the continuing ambiguity of the US position in multiple trade talks. "You always have a baseline," Mr. Trump told reporters at the White House. "Of course, there may be exceptions. Sometimes countries do something special for us, that's another story. But basically, the minimum baseline is 10 per cent, and some tariffs go much higher than that." The US maintained a 10 per cent baseline rate on British goods after the US and UK unveiled the framework agreement on Thursday. In response, administration officials insisted that Mr. Trump would continue to impose tariffs of at least 10 per cent on all imports to address the trade deficit and boost US manufacturing. Mr. Levitt, the White House press secretary, also said earlier in the day that "the president is determined to continue with this 10 per cent tariff baseline. I just spoke with him".