Donald Trump’s tariffs on BRICS nations outstrip those on the rest of the world. As India, China and Russia meet Sunday for a key summit in Tianjin, has the president forged a tighter alliance among his biggest rivals?
Donald Trump has been accused of inadvertently drawing BRICS nations — a loose grouping of some of the world’s fastest-growing emerging economies — closer together by imposing higher tariffs on them than on other countries.
China, the largest BRICSmember, still faces the prospect of a 145% tariff if it can’t cut a deal with Trump, while Brazil and India have been slapped with a 50% rate — half of India’s penalty is for buying discounted Russian oil. South Africa was given a 30% levy, and even newer members like Egypt could see their tariffs go up, due to their participation in BRICS.
Trump has repeatedly warned during the first seven months of his second term of additional punitive measures against any nation aligning with what he calls “anti-American policies” — a pointed reference to the BRICS’ growing challenge to US global dominance.
Trump gave BRICS a ‘shared incentive’
Former Indian trade official Ajay Srivastava thinks BRICS nations feel “little intimidation” from being singled out for additional penalties by Trump. He told DW that the tariffs “give BRICS a shared incentive to cut their reliance on the US, even if agendas differ.”
Those additional tariffs have created a common grievance among BRICS members, who are now expanding bilateral trade agreements in national currencies to reduce dependence on the US dollar. BRICS central banks have also ramped up gold purchases, another signal of their desire to dedollarize.
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