President Donald Trump has sent new letters to six countries, dictating new tariff rates. The latest letters, which Trump revealed via Truth Social, were sent to the leaders of the Philippines, Brunei, Moldova, Algeria, Iraq and Libya.

Which countries were targeted?

The US president announced that he would impose a 30% tariff on Algeria, Libya and Iraq, a 25% tariff on Brunei and Moldova and a 20% tariff on the Philippines. The rates are largely in line with the reciprocal tariffs he announced in April, although Iraq's tariffs were reduced from 39%, while the Philippines' tariffs were increased from 17%.

Trump began notifying trading partners of the new tariffs on Monday, ahead of a deadline this week for countries to complete trade negotiations with his administration. But the president also extended that deadline from Wednesday to Aug. 1 by executive order, effectively giving trading partners a grace period for talks and initially fueling skepticism on Wall Street that he would follow through with import tariffs.

Trump added to the uncertainty earlier this week by saying he was not 100% firm on this new deadline for the talks. Since then, he has been signaling to investors and trading partners that he is determined to follow through on his tariff threats, promising on Tuesday that all money will be due and payable by AUGUST 1, 2025 – no extensions will be granted for country-by-country contributions.

The president also raised the stakes for two key trading partners, saying the European Union could face unilateral tariffs soon, despite progress in negotiations, and promising to hit India with an additional 10% levy for its participation in the BRICS bloc of developing countries, which Trump sees as threatening the US dollar's status as the world's reserve currency.

He also set the stage for more tariffs by sector, announcing a 50% tariff on copper products that sent the metal up as much as 17% in New York on Tuesday, a record one-day increase. He also proposed tariffs of up to 200% on drug imports if drug companies don't move production to the US within the next year.

Tuesday's letters

Trump had hinted at the announcement on Tuesday night, writing on social media that he would announce at least 7 countries on Wednesday morning and an additional number of countries in the afternoon.

The new round of tariff letters comes two days after Trump first shared letters informing the leaders of 14 countries that their exports to the US would face steep new tariffs starting August 1.

The nearly identical two-page letters signed by Trump were sent to Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Laos, Myanmar, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tunisia, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Serbia, Cambodia and Thailand.

The rates for each country range from 20% to 40%. The letters note that the US may consider adjusting the new tariff levels, depending on our relationship with your country.

Many of these rates are close to those imposed by Trump under the April 2nd liberation day tariff crackdown, which set a 10% base levy on nearly every country on earth and imposed much higher tariffs on dozens of individual nations.

Finally, although the US president has characterized his tariff notification letters as agreements, even the actual deals he managed to strike during the negotiating period with the UK and Vietnam are far from complete, leaving many details unclear. Trump also secured a truce with China to reduce tariffs and facilitate the flow of the earth’s critical minerals.