Eliminates tariffs on more than 200 products, including beef, coffee and other foods
US President Donald Trump looks on as he speaks to members of the media as he flies from Florida to Joint Base Andrews en route to Washington, on Air Force One, US October 19, 2025. PHOTO: REUTERS
WASHINGTON:
US President Donald Trump on Friday lifted tariffs on more than 200 food products, including staples such as coffee, beef, bananas and orange juice, amid growing American consumer anxiety over the high cost of groceries.
The new exemptions, which took effect retroactively at midnight on Thursday, mark a sharp reversal for Trump, who has long insisted that the sweeping import tariffs he imposed earlier this year were not fueling inflation.
“They may in some cases” raise prices, Trump said of his tariffs when asked about the move on Air Force One Friday night. However, he insisted that overall, the US has “almost no inflation”.
Democrats scored a string of victories in state and local elections in Virginia, New Jersey and New York, where voters’ growing concerns about affordability, including high food prices, were a key issue.
Trump also told reporters he would move forward with a $2,000 payment to lower- and middle-income Americans funded by tariff revenue sometime next year. “The tariffs allow us to pay a dividend if we want to do that. Now we’re going to pay a dividend and we’re also reducing debt,” he said.
The Trump administration announced framework trade deals on Thursday that, once completed, would eliminate tariffs on some food and other imports from Argentina, Ecuador, Guatemala and El Salvador, with US officials eyeing additional deals before the end of the year.
Friday’s list includes products that American consumers typically buy to feed their families at home, many of which have seen double-digit price increases year over year. It includes over 200 species ranging from oranges, acai berries and paprika to cocoa, chemicals used in food production, fertilizers and even wafers.
The White House, in a news release about the order, said it came after “significant progress the president has made in securing more reciprocal terms for our bilateral trade relationship.”
It said Trump decided that certain foods could be exempted because they were not grown or processed in the United States.
a href=”https://tribune.com.pk/story/2577675/trump-cuts-tariffs-as-inflation-fears-mount”>Source link
