The Daily Populous Tuesday July 8th, 2025 night edition
Authored by cnbc.com and submitted by mvanigan

President Donald Trump holds a chart as he announces a plan for tariffs on imported goods during an event April 2, 2025, in the Rose Garden at the White House. Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images

At least 14 countries' imports are set to face steep blanket tariffs starting Aug. 1, President Donald Trump revealed Monday. The president, in a series of social media posts, shared screenshots of form letters dictating new tariff rates to the leaders of Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Laos and Myanmar. Later in the day, he shared another set of seven letters, to the leaders of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tunisia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Serbia, Cambodia and Thailand. Goods imported to the U.S. from Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Tunisia are now set to face 25% tariffs, according to the letters Trump posted. South African and Bosnian goods will be subject to a 30% U.S. tariff, and imports from Indonesia will be hit with a 32% excise duty. Bangladesh and Serbia are both at 35%, while Cambodia and Thailand are set for 36% tariff rates, the president's letters said. Imports from Laos and Myanmar will face a 40% duty, according to the letters Trump posted on Truth Social showed. The letters Trump signed add that the U.S. will "perhaps" consider adjusting the new tariff levels, "depending on our relationship with your Country." The letters are the first to be sent before Wednesday, the day his so-called reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries were scheduled to snap back to the higher levels he had announced in early April. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said even more letters will be sent out in the coming days. Later Monday afternoon, Trump signed an executive order delaying the Wednesday tariff deadline until Aug. 1. The order says Trump made that decision "based on additional information and recommendations from various senior officials."

U.S. financial markets closed down on Monday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 422.17 points, or 0.94%, to end the day at 44,406.36. The S&P 500 shed 0.79% to close at 6,229.98, and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 0.92% and closed at 20,412.52. For most of the countries, the new U.S. tariff rates hew fairly closely to what they had faced after Trump announced his "liberation day" tariffs on April 2. For instance, under those initial rates, U.S. imports from Japan were assigned a 24% tariff and South Korean imports faced a 25% duty. Following a chaotic week of losses across global markets, however, Trump on April 9 issued a 90-day pause, which lowered the various tariff rates to a flat 10%. That pause was set to expire Wednesday, before Leavitt announced that Trump would extend it by more than three weeks.

Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards President Donald Trump's letter to the prime minister of Japan. Donald Trump via Truth Social

Zoom In Icon Arrows pointing outwards President Donald Trump's letter to the president of the Republic of Korea. Donald Trump via Truth Social

Turkino on July 7th, 2025 at 17:12 UTC »

This isn't an emergency. The president shouldn't be allowed to set these things at such an impulsive whim, it's too damn disruptive.

misterxboxnj on July 7th, 2025 at 16:45 UTC »

Releases no Epstein list.....ohhhh look over there more tariffs...Nothing to see here.

Uhu0451 on July 7th, 2025 at 16:42 UTC »

Getting real tired with this tariff BS..