The statement comes at the same time as Trump this week in a letter threatened over 20 countries with general tariffs – which are in addition to so-called sector tariffs – of 20-50 percent from August 1.
Not everyone needs to get a letter. We will just say that all the remaining countries will pay, whether it's 20 percent or 15 percent. We will sort it out now, says Trump in a telephone interview with NBC.
Trump also says that he is not worried about how his tariff policy affects the stock exchanges.
I think the tariffs have been very well received. The stock market reached new heights today, he says, referring to the fact that the leading indexes on Wall Street closed on Thursday at record levels.
Since April 2, a basic tariff of 10 percent applies to foreign goods that the USA imports. Much higher tariffs have also been introduced on cars and car parts as well as steel and aluminum.
When the 10 percent tariffs were announced in April, the stock exchanges plummeted. The New York Stock Exchange's S&P 500 index lost 20 percent over a few days, in one of the fastest declines ever, notes NBC.
Among other things, the EU is currently negotiating with the USA about a tariff agreement.
