On July 30 and 31, President Trump issued several significant trade measures. The new developments come just days, or in some cases, hours, before the August 1 deadline for the “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariffs to resume.
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New Reciprocal Tariffs Announced
On July 31, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled “Further Modifying the Reciprocal Tariff Rates.” The Order sets new tariff rates for dozens of countries just hours before the “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariffs were due to resume. The new tariff rates will apply to goods entered for consumption (or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption) on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time seven days from the date of the Order (i.e., August 7). Goods in transit before the effective date will be subject to the old rate as long as they are entered for consumption before 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on October 5, 2025.
The Executive Order imposes duties ranging from 10% to 41% on goods imported from 68 countries. The list includes a number of countries with whom the United States has recently announced trade agreements; the order states that the listed tariffs will apply to goods imported from these countries until such time as a new Executive Order is issued memorializing the agreed terms. For countries not listed in the order, prevailing duty rates remain in effect, meaning that a 10% baseline rate applies for most other countries.
The Executive Order also embodies a non-stacking arrangement with respect to imports from the European Union, which recently announced a deal with the United States; goods with a Column 1 rate of less than 15% will be subject to a 15% reciprocal rate minus the Column 1 rate, while goods with a Column 1 rate exceeding 15% will be subject to no reciprocal tariff.
The Executive Order also includes an anticircumvention provision, stating that any goods that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) determines to have been transshipped to evade applicable duties will be subject to a 40% tariff.
White House Assesses 35% Tariff on Canadian Goods
Also on July 31, President Trump issued another Executive Order entitled “Amendment To Duties To Address The Flow Of Illicit Drugs Across Our Northern Border”, which formalizes his earlier announcement that Canadian goods would be subject to a 35% duty, increasing the existing duty rate of 25% that applied to most Canadian imports. The Executive Order states that the rate hike results from Canada’s “failure to devote satisfactory resources to arrest, seize, detain, or otherwise intercept drug trafficking organizations, other drug or human traffickers, criminals at large, and illicit drugs.” The higher rate will apply effective to goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on August 1.
The general terms, scope, and exceptions applicable under the prior tariff announcement will continue to apply, with some energy products and potash subject to a lower rate. USMCA qualifying goods continue to be exempt. As with the reciprocal tariffs, transhipped goods to evade applicable duties will be subject to a 40% duty.
US Imposes 50% Tariff on Copper Imports
In an anticipated move, on July 30 President Trump issued a Proclamation entitled “Adjusting Imports of Copper into the United States”, fixing the tariff rate on copper imports at 50%, effective from 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on August 1, following a Section 232 investigation on the national security impacts of the global copper market. The President had initiated the investigation into copper imports with his Executive Order 14220 entitled “Addressing the Threat to National Security from Imports of Copper,” which called on the Secretary of Commerce “to determine the effects on national security of imports of copper in all forms.” The President had announced the new tariffs in a July 9 social media post, but the Proclamation was the first official statement confirming the new rate. The move follows recent hikes on aluminium and steel duties.
The Proclamation notes the global dominance of a single foreign producer—which is not identified in the Proclamation, although it is almost certainly China—in the supply of smelted and refined copper and suggests diminishing domestic copper production imperils national security. According to the Proclamation, the tariff will “ensure that domestic fabricators are able to supply sufficient quantities of copper products essential for infrastructure, defense systems, and advanced manufacturing.”
The Proclamation places a universal 50% tariff on all imports of semi-finished copper products and intensive copper derivative products. The tariff is in addition to any other applicable duties, subject to certain exceptions. The new tariffs apply only to the copper content of a product, with the effective reciprocal tariff rate applying to the non-copper portion of the product. The copper tariffs do not stack with the automotive tariffs under Section 232, which currently sit at 25%; if a product is subject to both tariffs, the auto tariff rate will apply. According to a fact sheet published concurrently by the White House, the tariff will also not apply to copper input materials and copper scrap. Further information on the scope of the tariff was published the next day by CBP.
In addition to the tariffs, the Proclamation instruct the Secretary of Commerce to exercise powers under the Defense Production Act to require that 25% of high-quality copper scrap and 25% of copper input materials that are produced in the United States be sold in the United States. These measures aim to aid domestic fabricators and secondary refiners and boost U.S. refining capacity.
Suspension of De Minimis Exemption
Another July 30 Executive Order entitled “Suspending Duty-Free De Minimis Treatment For All Countries” removes the de minimis exemption currently available under 19 U.S.C. § 1321(a)(2)(C), which allows eligible shipments valued at or below $800 per day per person to enter the United States duty- and tax-free. The Administration had previously revoked de minimis eligibility for goods from China and Hong Kong effective May 2. However, once the subject Executive Order takes effect on August 29, goods of all origins will face the full range of applicable duties.
For an initial six month period, goods sent through the international postage system will be subject to a duty assessed by one of two methods: the ad valorem rate effective with respect to the country of origin or a fixed amount on a per item basis. For the latter methodology, the fixed amount depends on the tariff rate effective with respect to the county of origin:
- For countries with an effective tariff rate of less than 16%, an $80 duty per item will apply
- For countries with an effective tariff rate between 16% and 25% (inclusive), a $160 duty per item will apply
- For countries with an effective tariff rate of more than 25%, a $200 duty per item will apply
Each transportation carrier must apply the same methodology across all covered shipments but may change its methodology up to once a month by giving 24 hours’ notice to CBP. The fixed-rate method will expire after six months, at which point all shipments must comply with the ad valorem tariff.
Brazil Tariff Increase
In an Executive Order issued on July 30, 2025, the U.S. government implemented the previously announced 50% tariff on imports of Brazilian products. The measure imposes a 40% tariff that adds to the reciprocal 10% tariffs implemented on April 2, 2025, reaching a total of 50%. The measure will take effect at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on August 6.
According to the U.S. government, the tariff increase is based on allegations that Brazilian authorities have been taking measures that could be interpreted as censorship of U.S. citizens and companies. These measures include requests to U.S. digital platforms to block content and provide user data.
The Executive Order addresses the stacking order, stating that the new tariff will be applied in addition to existing ones, except for imports subject to Section 232 measures.
The measure excludes 694 products listed in Annex I, roughly representing 44% of the total Brazilian exports to the United States in 2024. Exempt items include minerals, energy products, basic metals, fertilizers, pulp and paper, certain chemicals, and goods for civil aviation. Products subject to the new tariff include key agribusiness exports such as meat, coffee, fruits, and sugar. Goods in transit before the seven-day deadline and cleared by October 5, 2025 are also excluded.
The Executive Order also provides that, in the event of retaliation by the Brazilian government, the United States may apply a corresponding increase in tariffs. On the other hand, it establishes that if Brazil adopts measures deemed appropriate to address the causes of the decision and aligns itself with the United States on national security, economic, and foreign policy matters, the order may be reviewed or amended.
On the same day as the Order, the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) imposed sanctions against a Brazilian judge who had presided over cases involving American social media companies. The Executive Order also mentions the “persecution” of former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who has been indicted on charges of corruption.
White House Postpones Mexico Tariff Adjustment
Following a meeting with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on July 31, President Trump took to social media to announce a temporary reprieve to an increased 30% tariff that was due to go into effect on August 1. According to the announcement, the new tariffs will be postponed for 90 days to allow the close trading partners additional time to negotiate an agreement whose “complexities…are somewhat different than other Nations because of both the problems, and assets, of the Border.”
Most Mexican imports are currently subject to a 25% duty, though exceptions apply; USMCA qualifying goods are exempt and potash is subject to a reduced 10% tariff. Additionally, tariffs on steel, aluminium and copper levied under Section 232 also apply to Mexican imports.
Reliance on IEEPA Continues
As with prior tariffs under the current administration, the new Canada, Brazil, and reciprocal tariffs and the elimination of the de minimis exemption invoke presidential authority under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). As previously reported, two courts have found that IEEPA does not confer authority on the President to impose the tariffs at issue and have issued injunctions preventing the enforcement of the tariffs. Those injunctions have been stayed pending an appeals of the decisions. Oral arguments in one of the appeals were held before the full Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on July 31.
