The US trade partners that believed they had worked out agreements with President Trump to avoid the harshest tariffs — such as the exemption for UK steel — are still waiting for their “deals” to be sealed, Bloomberg reports. And they’re growing impatient as the tariffs’ impact are beginning to have economic consequences.
“We’re continuing to see damage — the bleeding hasn’t stopped,” Japan’s chief trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa said Friday in a reference to the country’s car industry. “We want the US to sign the executive order as soon as possible.”
In other news, several major retailers will report earnings in the coming week, which may give a first glimpse into how President Trump’s tariffs have affected their bottom lines. The list includes Walmart (WMT), Target (TGT), Home Depot (HD), Lowe’s Companies (LOW) TJ Maxx parent TJX Companies (TJX) and Ross Stores (ROST).
During Walmart’s first-quarter earnings call, CEO Doug McMillon said the tariffs would result in higher prices, but didn’t elaborate. A few days later, Trump posted to Truth Social that the company should “eat the tariffs” and not blame them for raising prices. This week’s earnings reports should show how much Walmart and the other retailers have fared.
On Friday, Trump said he would unveil tariffs on semiconductor imports over the next couple of weeks as he prepares to expand his tariff agenda to different sectors.
“I’ll be setting tariffs next week and the week after on … chips — chips and semiconductors,” he told reporters.
Trump has already suggested he could set tariffs on chip imports around 100%. On Friday, he floated an even bigger number. “I’m going to have a rate that is going to be 200%, 300%,” he said.
The president has also promised duties on pharmaceutical imports in the near future.
Tariffs have starting to show up in economic data for the first time in a significant way. Wholesale inflation surged in July, rising by its fastest pace in around three years and stunning market observers.
So far, inflation data has shown little impact since Trump began rolling out sweeping duties in the spring. But as the tariffs become more engrained in the US economy, economists expect more data points to align with the Producer Price Index report — perhaps most notably in next month’s Consumer Price Index.
Earlier this month, Trump unveiled “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of US trade partners (which you can see in the graphic below).
The next negotiations to watch are Canada, Mexico, and China in the coming months.
