US President-elect Donald Trump has said he will impose equal tariffs on Indian products if India continues to charge high taxes on goods coming from the United States. Speaking at his Mar-a-Lago resort on Monday, Trump referred to India’s 100% tax on some American products and criticised it as being unfair.

Trump explained his point with an example: “If they tax us, we tax them the same amount.” He said trade should be fair and criticised India’s policies as being unfair. He also mentioned India and Brazil, saying both countries charge “high tariffs” on US products, which he does not find acceptable.

Trump focuses on "reciprocal" trade policy

Trump talked about the need for "reciprocal" trade relationships with important US trade partners. He explained this by saying, “The word reciprocal is important because if somebody charges us—India, we don’t have to talk about our own—if India charges us 100 percent, do we charge them nothing for the same? You know, they send in a bicycle, and we send them a bicycle. They charge us $100 and $200. India charges a lot. Brazil charges a lot. If they want to charge us, that’s fine, but we’re going to charge them the same thing.” This means Trump believes in equal treatment—if another country imposes high taxes, the US should do the same in return.

This statement shows that Trump wants a stricter approach to trade, which could affect the trade relationship between the US and India. The US and India have had problems in the past over taxes on goods. Trump's comments suggest that once he becomes president, he plans to take a firmer position in these trade disagreements.

Trade issues with other countries

Trump didn’t just stop at India. He talked about other nations like China, Mexico, and Canada. He criticised China’s trade practices as unfair and insisted future trade agreements will prioritise American businesses.

In dealing with Mexico and Canada, Trump proposed a 25% tax on imports unless these countries act to stop the illegal flow of drugs, like fentanyl, and reduce migrant crossings into the United States.

These policies might impact the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which sets the rules for trade between the US, Mexico, and Canada. To address Trump’s concerns, Canada has decided to spend 1.3 billion Canadian dollars on improving border security. Reports say that Canada will increase monitoring, send more officers to the border, and check exports going to the US more carefully.

Canada faces challenges at the border

Last year, over 23,000 migrants were detained at the Canada-US border, more than double the previous year’s number of 10,000. Canadian officials are expanding their efforts to manage these issues but admit it is difficult to stop crossings entirely. Trump’s "reciprocal" trade policy is expected to reshape relations with several key US partners in the coming months.