The small African kingdom of Lesotho feared the worst for its textile trade on Thursday after US President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs on its imports, the highest for a single nation.
RELATED | Donald Trump hits ‘nation no one’s heard of’ Lesotho with 50% tariffs
Different African international locations hit with Trump’s “reciprocal tariffs” above the brand new baseline charge of 10 % embody Madagascar (47 %), Mauritius (40 %), Botswana (37 %), Equatorial Guinea (30 %) and South Africa (30 %).
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However the mountain kingdom, which the US administration says is amongst “the worst offenders” with excessive tariffs on US imports, might be notably exhausting hit as it’s reliant on exports of largely textiles, together with denims.
‘Going to die’
Whereas its authorities didn’t instantly react to the brand new tariffs, Lesotho Non-public Sector Basis CEO Thabo Qhesi informed AFP on Thursday they meant that “the textile and attire trade goes to die.”
The clothes trade is the most important employer within the tiny kingdom of round 2.3 million folks, offering greater than 35 000 employees, in response to official information.
“Earlier than the introduction of the reciprocal tariffs, traders loved exporting items to the US market duty-free,” Qhesi mentioned.
“With the introduction of the 50% tariffs, Lesotho is now not going to be profitable for traders,” he mentioned, including the transport, retail and residential property sectors would additionally undergo.
At 47 %, the tariffs are additionally excessive for Madagascar, which mentioned on Thursday it had approached the US embassy to “search clarification and discover prospects for adjusting these new tariff boundaries”.
The federal government will “mobilise all diplomatic and industrial levers to acquire a assessment of those measures”, it mentioned.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa mentioned on Thursday the tariffs have been “a barrier to commerce and shared prosperity”.
They underscore the pressing want for “a brand new bilateral and mutually useful commerce settlement”, he mentioned.
The US is South Africa’s second-largest buying and selling accomplice.
The nation’s automotive sector might be among the many hardest hit, with separate tariffs of 25% on foreign-made automobiles going into impact shortly after Trump’s late Wednesday proclamation.
Motor autos account for 22% of South Africa’s exports to america, price $1.88 billion, in response to authorities statistics.
Diversifying commerce
South African Minister of Commerce Parks Tau mentioned the brand new world commerce warfare would have an effect on poorer international locations most and “actually devastate” Lesotho.
“We now must look amongst ourselves and say, inside the customs union in Southern Africa, inside the Southern African Growth Neighborhood, and inside the area of Africa, how we’re going to answer these points,” he informed journalists.
“Diversifying our commerce goes to be necessary… enhancing our work on the African continent and collaborating,” he mentioned.
The brand new US tariffs might be “disruptive of world worth chains, invite retaliation, ignite inflation, dampen world financial progress and immediate repricing of dangers in monetary markets”, mentioned South Africa-based economics professor Raymond Parsons.
South Africa “should see what commerce changes may be made to win concessions to ameliorate the scenario”, Parsons mentioned, including Pretoria ought to “prudently seize the second” to seek out different buying and selling companions.
Nevertheless, “everyone goes to search for new buying and selling companions,” mentioned South African economist Dawie Roodt.
“In fact, we should attempt. However it’s going to be powerful.”
Donald Trump’s US Reciprocal Tariffs by nation:
| Nation/Area | Nation/Area Tariff* | US Reciprocal Tariffs |
|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan | 49% | 10% |
| Albania | 10% | 10% |
| Algeria | 59% | 30% |
| Andorra | 10% | 10% |
| Angola | 63% | 32% |
| Anguilla | 10% | 10% |
| Antigua and Barbuda | 10% | 10% |
| Argentina | 10% | 10% |
| Armenia | 10% | 10% |
| Aruba | 10% | 10% |
| Australia | 10% | 10% |
| Azerbaijan | 10% | 10% |
| Bahamas | 10% | 10% |
| Bahrain | 10% | 10% |
| Bangladesh | 74% | 37% |
| Barbados | 10% | 10% |
| Belize | 10% | 10% |
| Benin | 10% | 10% |
| Bermuda | 10% | 10% |
| Bhutan | 10% | 10% |
| Bolivia | 20% | 10% |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina | 70% | 35% |
| Botswana | 74% | 37% |
| Brazil | 10% | 10% |
| British Indian Ocean Territory | 10% | 10% |
| British Virgin Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Brunei | 47% | 24% |
| Burma | 88% | 44% |
| Burundi | 10% | 10% |
| Cabo Verde | 10% | 10% |
| Cambodia | 97% | 49% |
| Cameroon | 22% | 11% |
| Cayman Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Central African Republic | 10% | 10% |
| Chad | 26% | 13% |
| Chile | 10% | 10% |
| China | 67% | 34% |
| Christmas Island | 10% | 10% |
| Cocos (Keeling) Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Colombia | 10% | 10% |
| Comoros | 10% | 10% |
| Congo (Brazzaville) | 10% | 10% |
| Congo (Kinshasa) | 22% | 11% |
| Cook dinner Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Costa Rica | 17% | 10% |
| Cote d’Ivoire | 41% | 21% |
| Curacao | 10% | 10% |
| Djibouti | 10% | 10% |
| Dominica | 10% | 10% |
| Dominican Republic | 10% | 10% |
| Ecuador | 12% | 10% |
| Egypt | 10% | 10% |
| El Salvador | 10% | 10% |
| Equatorial Guinea | 25% | 13% |
| Eritrea | 10% | 10% |
| Eswatini | 10% | 10% |
| Ethiopia | 10% | 10% |
| EU | 39% | 20% |
| Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas) | 82% | 41% |
| Fiji | 63% | 32% |
| French Guiana | 10% | 10% |
| French Polynesia | 10% | 10% |
| Gabon | 10% | 10% |
| Gambia | 10% | 10% |
| Georgia | 10% | 10% |
| Ghana | 17% | 10% |
| Gibraltar | 10% | 10% |
| Grenada | 10% | 10% |
| Guadeloupe | 10% | 10% |
| Guatemala | 10% | 10% |
| Guinea | 10% | 10% |
| Guinea-Bissau | 10% | 10% |
| Guyana | 76% | 38% |
| Haiti | 10% | 10% |
| Heard and McDonald Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Honduras | 10% | 10% |
| Iceland | 10% | 10% |
| India | 52% | 26% |
| Indonesia | 64% | 32% |
| Iran | 10% | 10% |
| Iraq | 78% | 39% |
| Israel | 33% | 17% |
| Jamaica | 10% | 10% |
| Japan | 46% | 24% |
| Jordan | 40% | 20% |
| Kazakhstan | 54% | 27% |
| Kenya | 10% | 10% |
| Kiribati | 10% | 10% |
| Kosovo | 10% | 10% |
| Kuwait | 10% | 10% |
| Kyrgyzstan | 10% | 10% |
| Laos | 95% | 48% |
| Lebanon | 10% | 10% |
| Lesotho | 99% | 50% |
| Liberia | 10% | 10% |
| Libya | 61% | 31% |
| Liechtenstein | 73% | 37% |
| Madagascar | 93% | 47% |
| Malawi | 34% | 17% |
| Malaysia | 47% | 24% |
| Maldives | 10% | 10% |
| Mali | 10% | 10% |
| Marshall Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Martinique | 10% | 10% |
| Mauritania | 10% | 10% |
| Mauritius | 80% | 40% |
| Mayotte | 10% | 10% |
| Micronesia | 10% | 10% |
| Moldova | 61% | 31% |
| Monaco | 10% | 10% |
| Mongolia | 10% | 10% |
| Montenegro | 10% | 10% |
| Montserrat | 10% | 10% |
| Morocco | 10% | 10% |
| Mozambique | 31% | 16% |
| Namibia | 42% | 21% |
| Nauru | 59% | 30% |
| Nepal | 10% | 10% |
| New Zealand | 20% | 10% |
| Nicaragua | 36% | 18% |
| Niger | 10% | 10% |
| Nigeria | 27% | 14% |
| Norfolk Island | 58% | 29% |
| North Macedonia | 65% | 33% |
| Norway | 30% | 15% |
| Oman | 10% | 10% |
| Pakistan | 58% | 29% |
| Panama | 10% | 10% |
| Papua New Guinea | 15% | 10% |
| Paraguay | 10% | 10% |
| Peru | 10% | 10% |
| Philippines | 34% | 17% |
| Qatar | 10% | 10% |
| Reunion | 73% | 37% |
| Rwanda | 10% | 10% |
| Saint Elena | 15% | 10% |
| Saint Kitts and Nevis | 10% | 10% |
| Saint Lucia | 10% | 10% |
| Saint Pierre and Miquelon | 99% | 50% |
| Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 10% | 10% |
| Samoa | 10% | 10% |
| San Marino | 10% | 10% |
| São Tomé and Príncipe | 10% | 10% |
| Saudi Arabia | 10% | 10% |
| Senegal | 10% | 10% |
| Serbia | 74% | 37% |
| Sierra Leone | 10% | 10% |
| Singapore | 10% | 10% |
| Sint Maarten | 10% | 10% |
| Solomon Islands | 10% | 10% |
| South Africa | 60% | 30% |
| South Korea | 50% | 25% |
| South Sudan | 10% | 10% |
| Sri Lanka | 88% | 44% |
| Sudan | 10% | 10% |
| Suriname | 10% | 10% |
| Svalbard and Jan Mayen | 10% | 10% |
| Switzerland | 61% | 31% |
| Syria | 81% | 41% |
| Taiwan | 64% | 32% |
| Tajikistan | 10% | 10% |
| Tanzania | 10% | 10% |
| Thailand | 72% | 36% |
| Timor-Leste | 10% | 10% |
| Togo | 10% | 10% |
| Tokelau | 10% | 10% |
| Tonga | 10% | 10% |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 12% | 10% |
| Tunisia | 55% | 28% |
| Turkey | 10% | 10% |
| Turkmenistan | 10% | 10% |
| Turks and Caicos Islands | 10% | 10% |
| Tuvalu | 10% | 10% |
| Uganda | 20% | 10% |
| Ukraine | 10% | 10% |
| United Arab Emirates | 10% | 10% |
| United Kingdom | 10% | 10% |
| Uruguay | 10% | 10% |
| Uzbekistan | 10% | 10% |
| Vanuatu | 44% | 22% |
| Venezuela | 29% | 15% |
| Vietnam | 90% | 46% |
| Yemen | 10% | 10% |
| Zambia | 33% | 17% |
| Zimbabwe | 35% | 18% |
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By Garrin Lambley © Agence France-Presse
