This previously happened in October, when Trump declared publicly that he’d received similar assurances from Modi, on which he never delivered. South Korea may have been doing the same by dragging out the ratification of a trade deal that committed the country to invest $350 billion in the U.S. Unfortunately for Seoul, Trump noticed and announced a new 25 percent tariff on Jan. 27. Asked last week about his announced hike on South Korea tariffs, the White House said it still has no timeline for when they might go into effect. Threats to slap 100 percent tariffs on Canada in reaction to its pending trade deal with China are also just bluster, at least thus far.

Source: Washington Post February 09, 2026 00:10 UTC