Trump tariffs: Putrajaya to discuss on Monday, Fahmi says

Summary

• Govt spokesperson Fahmi Fadzil says Putrajaya will discuss how to deal with the US tariffs on Monday.

• This is because Asean trade ministers will be meeting tomorrow.

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The government will discuss US President Donald Trump's recent tariffs on Monday, government spokesperson Fahmi Fadzil said.

This is because Asean trade ministers will be holding a meeting tomorrow, the communications minister explained.

“On Monday, we will make a few decisions before we request a diplomatic delegation and trade discussion with the US in Washington,” Fahmi told a press conference at the Communications Ministry.

Earlier, Fahmi was reported as saying that Putrajaya would decide on the matter on Monday.

However, the Communications Ministry later clarified Fahmi’s statement.

On April 3, Trump unveiled higher tariffs for many countries in a move to address the republic's trade deficit.

The move saw the US slapping reciprocal tariffs of 24 percent on Malaysia.

Cambodia was slapped with a whopping 49 percent tariff, the highest among Asean nations, followed by Laos (48 percent), Vietnam (46 percent) and Myanmar (44 percent).

While Brunei is also looking at a 24 percent tariff, Indonesia's exported goods to the US could see a 32 percent tariff. A 17 percent and 10 percent tariff were also imposed on the Philippines and Singapore, respectively.

It had earlier been suggested that the Trump administration may have used artificial intelligence to determine its tariff formula, as multiple users found that platforms such as ChatGPT would furnish the same formula when asked how to calculate the reciprocal tariffs.

Xi’s state visit

Fahmi also revealed that Chinese President Xi Jinping will be in Malaysia for a state visit from April 15 to 17.

“For full and detailed information on this visit, (information can be obtained) from the Foreign Ministry,” he said.

Xi’s visit is part of Malaysia’s efforts to seek improved trade relationships with other countries, Fahmi added.

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