‘Nothing Is Certain but Uncertainty’: How the World Is Reacting to Trump’s Tariff Reversal

Hours after Donald Trump’s sweeping “reciprocal” tariffs—which were announced with much fanfare last week, jolting world leaders and roiling global markets—kicked in on Wednesday, the U.S. President pulled a 180.

Trump announced a 90-day pause on countries that have not retaliated, temporarily lowering the high tariffs on nearly all trading partners to a baseline 10%, while raising the tax rate on imports from China to 145%, which has retaliated with tit-for-tat hikes on U.S. imports.

“I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line, they were getting yippy,” Trump told reporters on Wednesday after the reversal. Although, he added, “nothing’s over yet.”

But while Trump allies like Bill Ackman praised the move, which stoked stock gains after a week of volatility, as “textbook, Art of the Deal,” others say the abrupt climbdown has only made things more confusing. 

Here’s what to know about how countries around the world have begun responding to the whiplash.

Bangladesh

Muhammad Yunus, Bangladesh’s interim leader, thanked Trump for “responding positively to our request” for a pause. The U.S. is the biggest export market for Bangladesh, which had been hit hard by a 37% tariff. “We will continue to work with your administration in support of your trade agenda,” Yunus added.

Brazil

Brazil’s Foreign Trade Secretary Tatiana Prazeres said on Thursday that the country will continue negotiations with the U.S. over tariffs, which remain unchanged at 10% for Brazilian imports. At the same time, the country plans to expand its trade partnerships with other countries.

“The guidance from the minister and Vice President [Geraldo Alckmin] is to negotiate, negotiate, negotiate,” Prazeres said at an online event organized by the Brazil-China Business Council on Thursday. “We have an open dialogue with U.S. authorities.”

The U.S. is among Brazil’s biggest trading partners, second only to China. A Brazilian official told the Associated Press that Brazil and the U.S. have had meetings for over five weeks, beginning after the U.S. imposed a 25% tariff on steel—a key export for Brazil.

Prazeres said there could be opportunities to diversify trade. She emphasized ratifying a trade deal with the E.U. that has been in the works since last year. She also pointed to a deal between the Mercosur bloc—which includes Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay—and Singapore in 2023.

“In the past, during the first version of the trade war, we saw an increase in Brazil’s soybean exports to China,” Prazeres said.

Still, she said a U.S. trade war would be unideal. “That’s not the scenario we hope for, because the risks are very significant.”

Cambodia

Cambodia will “commence negotiations soon” with the U.S., the country’s Commerce Ministry said in a Thursday statement.

“The Royal Government has received a positive response from the United States following our official request for negotiation to achieve a mutual solution,” the statement said. Cambodia, which faced a 49% “reciprocal” tariff before the pause, offered to reduce its tariff on 19 categories of U.S. imports from 35% to 5%, according to the statement. Last year, Cambodia exported $9.9 billion in goods to the U.S., which accounted for around 38% of the country’s total exports, according to Cambodian trade statistics.

Jean-Francois Tain, Minister Delegate to the Prime Minister of Cambodia, called the pause “good news.”

“This trade war is a global phenomenon. However, each government thinks of its own country’s interest first,” Tain said in Khmer on Facebook. He said Cambodia was one of the first countries to seek negotiations with the U.S. after the tariffs were announced last week.

China

China announced new countermeasures on the U.S. on Friday, raising tariffs on U.S. imports from 84% to 125%, effective Saturday. The escalation comes after Trump clarified on Thursday that tariffs on China total 145%—the 125% rate he announced Wednesday on top of an existing 20% tariff.

China’s finance ministry said, however, that the country would stop there and ignore further escalations from the U.S. “At the current rate, there is already no market acceptance for U.S. imports to China,” the ministry said in a statement in Chinese. Tit-for-tat tariffs no longer make economic sense and have become just a “numbers game,” the ministry said. “It would be a joke.”

Nevertheless, further attempts by the U.S. to infringe on China’s interests would be met by other counterattacks, the ministry said, without specifying what that would look like.

Wang Wentao, China’s commerce minister, said at Thursday’s Special Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Economic Ministers’ meeting that China “firmly opposes” the U.S. tariffs and vowed to continue with countermeasures.

“I want to emphasize that there is no winner in a trade war, and that China does not want a trade war. But the Chinese government will by no means sit by when the legitimate rights and interests of its people are being hurt and deprived,” a Ministry of Commerce official said, according to state-run newspaper People’s Daily.

He Yongqian, a commerce ministry spokesperson, said at a regular press briefing on Thursday that China is open to dialogue with the U.S. but it must be conducted on an equal basis with mutual respect. “We do not provoke trouble, nor do we fear trouble,” He said, adding that coercion, threats, and blackmails are the wrong ways to deal with China.

“If the United States is bent on waging a tariff war or trade war, China is ready to fight to the end,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a Wednesday briefing.

Wang added that China is ready to strengthen its ties with ASEAN trading partners. Wang also reportedly spoke with E.U. Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maroš Šefčovič on Tuesday about the tariffs, and Spain’s Prime Minister met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday, China’s Commerce Ministry said.

Treasury Secretary Bessent warned on Wednesday that countries pivoting towards China would be “cutting [their] own throat.”

China has also filed a complaint against the U.S. with the World Trade Organization (WTO), according to People’s Daily. At a meeting of the WTO’s Council for Trade in Goods on Wednesday, China said U.S. tariff policy violates WTO rules and called it a “typical act of unilateralism, protectionism, and economic bullying.”

“If the United States really seeks to resolve the issue through dialogue and negotiation, it should demonstrate an attitude of equality, respect and reciprocity,” Lin said.

Read More: Chinese State Media Rebuke Trump’s Tariffs With AI Song and Videos

Cote d’Ivoire (Ivory Coast)

Cote d’Ivoire, or the Ivory Coast,  raised the threat of making cocoa more expensive in response to Trump’s tariffs on Thursday. The world’s largest cocoa producer was hit with a 21% tariff last week.

Agriculture Minister Kobenan Kouassi Adjoumani told reporters in Abidjan, “When you tax our product that we export to your country, we will increase the price of cocoa and that will have a repercussion on the price to the consumer.” He did not detail what measures the country would take; the country cannot set cocoa prices, but could raise export taxes.

He added that the country would seek to strengthen its ties with the E.U. so that “if our products are not accepted in the United States, the E.U. can recover all of them.”

European Union

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the tariff pause in a Thursday statement, calling it an “important step towards stabilising the global economy.”

“Tariffs are taxes that only hurt businesses and consumers,” von der Leyen said in the statement. “That’s why I’ve consistently advocated for a zero-for-zero tariff agreement between the European Union and the United States.”

The E.U. will diversify its trade partnerships with countries that “share our commitment to a free and open exchange of goods, services, and ideas,” even as it continues to seek negotiations with the U.S., von der Leyen added.

Von der Leyen added that the E.U. will also focus on lifting barriers in its own single market. “This crisis has made one thing clear: in times of uncertainty, the single market is our anchor of stability and resilience,” she said.

The European Union will also suspend its planned retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods, which were approved hours before Trump’s pause and were meant to start April 15, for 90 days. The E.U. had voted in favour of retaliatory tariffs on $23 billion in goods in response to Trump’s previously announced 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum—which remain in effect. The E.U. had faced a 20% “reciprocal” tariff—which is now a baseline 10% tariff during the pause—on top of the metals tariff and a separate 25% tariff on cars and car parts.

“We want to give negotiations a chance,” von der Leyen posted on X on Thursday. “While finalising the adoption of the EU countermeasures that saw strong support from our Member States, we will put them on hold for 90 days. If negotiations are not satisfactory, our countermeasures will kick in.”

She added that the E.U. will continue to weigh its response to U.S. auto tariffs. “As I have said before, all options remain on the table,” she said.

Germany

Germany’s chancellor-in-waiting Friedrich Merz said Trump’s move is a “response to the determination of the Europeans.”

In an interview with broadcaster RTL Direkt, Merz said, “We are determined to defend ourselves,” echoing von der Leyen’s statement last week. “Unity helps,” Merz added.

Merz said a “trade conflict” would not benefit anyone. “Trump is currently seeing the problems of his tariff policy at home. The inflation rate is rising, imports are collapsing, and exports are experiencing major difficulties,” he added.

“The best thing is for us all to work together to achieve zero percent tariffs in transatlantic trade. And then the problem will be solved,” he said.

Read More: How Trump’s Tariffs Could Lead to a Global Recession

Greece

“There is a European message and then there is a Greek message,” Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis of Greece, which is a member of the E.U., told American conservative news network Breitbart on Wednesday. “On the European front there is a possibility of finding a win-win solution when it comes to trade, a solution which will be mutually beneficial.”

“As far as Greece is concerned, we have a strategic partnership with the U.S.,” he added. “I have worked with President Trump before and I can work very well with him again addressing regional challenges.”

India

An unnamed Indian government official told Reuters on Thursday that the country wants to move swiftly on a trade deal with the U.S., after Trump temporarily reduced a 27% “reciprocal” tariff on the country to 10%.

“India is one of the first nations to start talks over a deal with the United States and to have jointly agreed to a deadline to conclude it,” the official said.

Ireland

Simon Harris, the Tánaiste or second-ranking government leader of Ireland, a member of the E.U., said in a Wednesday statement that Trump’s pause “will come as a relief to many businesses in Ireland,” adding that “further engagement and clarification” is needed.

Harris’s comments came after a meeting the same day with U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, D.C. Prior to the meeting, Harris said in a statement that “direct bilateral engagement with the United States is one of my priorities.”

He added that the meeting demonstrated “an openness on the part of the U.S. to engage” with negotiations.

In an earlier Wednesday statement prior to the pause, Irish Taoiseach Micheál Martin said some Irish exporters had already seen U.S. orders “slowing or even drying up entirely, putting valuable and skilled jobs at risk.” Martin said he stood by the E.U.’s approach to safeguarding its interests while seeking negotiations.

Italy

Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti said Italy, also a member of the E.U., welcomed Trump’s pause on tariffs. He told reporters in Rome on Wednesday: “Within the G7 all of us outside the U.S. spoke to try to calm the situation and find a way to bring the Trump administration to the table and to a reasonable position.”

Japan

Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s Minister for Economic Revitalization who was hired this week to lead negotiations on U.S. tariffs after Japan was initially hit with a 24% “reciprocal” rate, told Bloomberg News on Thursday that the country’s “position is unchanged.”

“We continue to express our strong concerns and strongly request that they be reviewed,” he said, citing ongoing targeted tariffs on Japan’s metals and automobiles, key exports for the country.

On Wednesday, Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato ruled out using Japan’s U.S. Treasury holdings as a bargaining chip in negotiations with the U.S. Akazawa told Bloomberg that no specific dates have been set yet for a visit to Washington. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he will lead talks with Japan.

Lesotho

Lesotho’s Trade and Industry Minister Mokhethi Shelile said in a Thursday interview with South African broadcaster SABC News that he was not relieved by Trump’s 90-day pause, although it presents an opportunity for negotiations.

The small, landlocked country was tied for the worst hit by a 50% “reciprocal” U.S. tariff last week. The textile industry is the biggest private employer in the country, employing around 30,000 people—nearly half of whom produce apparel for American brands.

“I don’t know what is going to happen after 90 days,” Shelile said. “I don’t have a good experience with trying to get meetings with [the Trump Administration.]” It’s possible that “after three months, we have not even been able to sit down with the American government to negotiate.”

Nevertheless, the pause gives the country time to diversify its trading partnerships, and hopefully get a seat at the table, Shelile said.

“I hope we will be given an audience,” he added, noting however: “I’m not confident.”

Malaysia

Malaysia’s Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry posted on LinkedIn that the country welcomes Trump’s pause on higher tariffs, even as “this volatility creates significant challenges for ASEAN economies.” Malaysia had been hit with a 24% “reciprocal” U.S. tariff, and other members, including Vietnam and Thailand, of ASEAN, which Malaysia holds the rotating chairship this year, also faced significant levies, which had briefly gone into effect on Wednesday after Trump’s initial announcement last week.

“Nothing is certain but uncertainty when it comes to Trump tariffs!” Tengku Zafrul Aziz said, adding that the latest development would be discussed at Thursday’s Special ASEAN Economic Ministers’ meeting. The meeting, which was scheduled prior to the pause, was intended to deliver a coordinated ASEAN response to Trump’s trade policies.

“Malaysia is actively assessing the implications of these changes and remains dedicated to collaborating with ASEAN partners to mitigate disruptions, enhance regional economic resilience, and advocate for balanced and predictable trade relations,” Zafrul wrote. “ASEAN unity and regional economic integration will be more crucial than ever before and we welcome the support of partners that share this vision and want to see us thrive.” Malaysia will continue to diversify its trade and develop new markets as a “hedge against the current uncertainties,” he added.

The 10 ASEAN member states and Timor-Leste agreed at Thursday’s meeting not to retaliate against Trump’s tariffs, which the association said “risk eroding the foundation of fair competition and mutual benefit that multilateralism is built upon,” and added that the 90-day pause will provide “a window of opportunity to find a pragmatic and mutually advantageous solution for ASEAN in a strategic and tactful manner.”

Read More: New Southeast Asia Survey Shows Greater Trust in the U.S. Than China This Year—but There’s a Catch

Poland

Prime Minister Donald Tusk of Poland, which is an E.U. member state, posted on X on Wednesday, “let’s make the best of the next 90 days.”

“Maintaining close transatlantic relations is a common responsibility of Europeans and Americans, regardless of temporary turbulences,” Tusk added.

On Monday, Tusk had posted in Polish on X, “The reaction to the tariff war was predictable. The stock market earthquake from Japan through Europe to America must be survived without nervous decisions. The Polish stock market also got a ricochet, but political and economic stability are our assets in this difficult time. We will calmly persevere!”

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia’s Commerce Minister Majid bin Abdullah al-Qasabi spoke with his Chinese counterpart, Wang, on Thursday about strengthening bilateral trade, according to a statement by the Chinese ministry.

Saudi Arabia faced a 10% “reciprocal” tariff on exports to the U.S., which remains unchanged with Trump’s pause.

Singapore

Singapore’s Monetary Authority said Thursday that it is “ready to work constructively with all partners, including the United States,” after the country met with other ASEAN member states and Timor-Leste on Thursday.

Aligned with ASEAN, the country, which was hit with a 10% “reciprocal” tariff by Trump that was unaffected by the pause, does not plan to impose retaliatory measures on the U.S.

“The uncertainties arising from the imposition of tariffs and potential retaliation could pose risks of heightened volatility in both capital flows and exchange rates,” the central bank said in a statement.

South Africa

Parks Tau, South Africa’s Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, spoke with China’s Wang on Thursday, according to a statement by the Chinese Commerce Ministry.

The talks focused on Trump’s tariffs, developing economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, and leveraging multilateral platforms like G20, an intergovernmental forum that includes China and the U.S. in its members, the statement said. South Africa is this year’s rotating chair of the G20.

South Africa, which faced a 31% “reciprocal” tariff, previously said it had no plans to retaliate against the U.S. and will instead seek negotiations. The country emphasized diversifying and expanding its trade and developing strategic partnerships with other countries in navigating U.S. tariffs.

The U.S. accounted for under 8% of South Africa’s total exports last year, according to the trade ministry, and its trade surplus with the U.S. was largely due to agricultural products and minerals.

South Korea

South Korean trade envoy Cheong In-kyo said Thursday that the tariff pause provides room for negotiations. Cheong met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Tuesday about lowering tariff rates on South Korea.

The U.S. had imposed a 26% “reciprocal” tariff on South Korea, which is now down to the baseline 10%—although South Korea still faces blanket 25% tariffs on the auto industry, a key export.

Spain

“A trade war favors no one. We all will lose,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Thursday after meeting with Vietnamese leaders in Hanoi, the AP reported. Spain is a member of the E.U., which was subject to a 20% tariff on exports to the U.S. before the pause. The country has since carried out diplomatic visits in an effort to boost economic ties and diversify its markets.

“Expanding the trade relations that we have with other countries, including a partner as important as China, does not go against anyone,” Spanish Agriculture Minister Luis Planas reportedly said in Vietnam on Wednesday. “Everyone has to defend their own interests.”

Taiwan

Taiwanese Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung said Trump’s pause gives the country breathing room for negotiations. Lin told reporters at parliament on Thursday that during the 90-day pause, the two countries can “discuss Taiwan-U.S. economic and trade cooperation in a more detailed and in-depth manner.”

He added that Taiwan hopes to “take advantage of the huge U.S. market … to form a Taiwan-U.S. coalition, a joint fleet approach.”

On Thursday, Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te wrote in a Bloomberg News op-ed that Taiwan is “committed to strengthening bilateral cooperation in manufacturing and innovation,” in particular by encouraging Taiwanese businesses to expand their footprint in the U.S. and “deepening commercial ties” between Taiwanese and U.S. firms.

Lai emphasized the objective of “reducing all tariffs between Taiwan and the U.S.” He said Taiwan is willing to cut its tariff rate on U.S. products from an average nominal rate of 6% to 0%. Trump had imposed a 32% “reciprocal” tariff on Taiwan based on a calculation that Taiwan imposes 64% tariffs on the U.S., though Trump’s calculation was actually based on the trade deficit.

A bulk of Taiwan’s trade surplus with the U.S. is in its export of semiconductors, which accounts for around 40% of its total exports. The U.S. previously raised the threat of tariffs on the semiconductor industry but waived them when Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC)—the world’s largest chipmaker—pledged a $100 billion investment in the U.S. last month, after having previously already committed $65 billion in investment in April 2024 during the Biden Administration.

“All I did is say, ‘If you don’t build your plant here, you are going to pay a big tax. Twenty-five, maybe 50, maybe 75, maybe 100%,’” Trump said about his tariff threat on the Taiwanese semiconductor industry at a National Republican Congressional Committee dinner on Tuesday.

Taiwan will also increase its imports of U.S. goods, Lai wrote in his op-ed Thursday. “Over the past five years, rising demand for semiconductors and AI-related components has increased our trade surplus. In response to these market trends, Taiwan will seek to narrow the trade imbalance through the procurement of energy, agriculture and other industrial goods from the U.S.”

At the same time, Taiwan’s central bank chief Yang Chin-long warned at a Thursday parliamentary session that uncertainty remained in spite of the pause and that a U.S.-China trade war would still hurt the global economy.

Thailand

The country’s Finance Minister Pichai Chunhavajira said Thursday that the pause would allow Thailand more time to prepare a response to U.S. tariffs.

“As the situation changes, we have to adjust,” he told reporters in Bangkok. Thailand faced a 36% “reciprocal” tariff before the pause.

Since the initial tariff announcement last week, Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra offered to increase imports of energy, aircraft and agricultural products from the U.S. Supavud Saicheua, a policy advisor to the Prime Minister, said the country would increase exports of surplus American farm products, process them in Thailand, and re-export them as higher-value products.

Thailand is ready to manage the evolving trade situation, the country’s Foreign Affairs Minister Maris Sangiampongsa said Thursday, according to the country’s public relations department.

“Thai-U.S. relations remain strong and are expected to support the negotiation process ahead,” the release said.

United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates agreed to launch talks toward a bilateral free-trade agreement with the E.U., the E.U. announced on Thursday.

Von der Leyen and U.A.E. President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan spoke on a phone call on Thursday, according to the statement. The U.A.E., which faced a 10% “reciprocal” tariff from the U.S. that remains unchanged by the pause, is among the world’s top 10 oil producers.

“The UAE shares strong and longstanding ties with the European Union and its member states, and today we agreed to launch negotiations towards a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement with the EU,” Sheikh Mohamed posted on X. “Through this agreement, we aim to deepen bilateral relations and promote economic growth for the benefit of our countries and peoples.”

Von der Leyen told the Financial Times that it is in E.U. countries’ interest to “balance the system and to have free trade really competing on quality and not tariffs.”

United Kingdom

The U.K. will continue to “coolly and calmly” approach negotiations with the U.S., a spokesperson for Downing Street said Thursday.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told Sky News on Thursday that the government’s position “hasn’t changed.” The U.K.’s tariff rate also didn’t change with the pause, as the country previously already faced the baseline 10% “reciprocal” tariff rate that other countries have been temporarily reduced to.

“What we want to see,” Cooper said, “is a reduction in barriers to trade, so countries can trade effectively.”

Vietnam

The U.S. and Vietnam agreed to begin negotiations for a trade agreement, the Vietnamese government announced hours after Trump’s tariff pause on Wednesday. Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister Ho Duc Phoc said the two countries, which exchanged nearly $150 billion in goods last year, should work towards creating a framework to allow for mutual trade relations, according to the government’s official news channel.

Greer, the U.S. Trade Representative, confirmed that he met with Phoc on Wednesday to “discuss reciprocal trade and the vast economic opportunities in our bilateral relationship.” The U.S. is the biggest export market for Vietnam, which faced a 46% “reciprocal” tariff.

Vietnam had earlier offered to cut its tariff rates on U.S. goods to 0%, Trump said on Truth Social, but White House trade advisor Peter Navarro said the offer was not enough.