The fine print of Trump’s announcement will be revealed in the coming hours

On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced the imposition of “reciprocal” tariffs on dozens of countries, including the world’s leading economies, accusing them of unfair trade practices against his country.

The tariff measures, announced in a speech from the White House Rose Garden—what Trump described as “Liberation Day”—include levies of at least 10% on all imports to the United States, affecting Mercosur countries, Australia, and New Zealand, and set to take effect between April 5 and 9.

Beyond the major headlines about a blanket tariff hike, the specifics for each sector were still unknown. In the case of beef, initially, this 10% rate would apply to products shipped under quota (currently at 0%) and would be added to those shipped outside quota, which would see their tariffs jump from 26.4% to 36.4%. However, there were no certainties in the hours following the announcement. “It seems like it’s 10% across the board, both within and outside quota,” speculated a member of the Uruguayan meatpacking industry shortly after Trump’s conference.

For Australia and New Zealand—whose quotas are around 400,000 and over 200,000 tons, respectively—the tariff applies within quota. As these quotas are so large, those countries operate in the U.S. market only within quota, so their rate will go from 0% to 10%.

Mercosur countries work mostly outside quota, as this are relatively small.

This decision will increase the competitiveness of U.S. domestic production compared to imports, chiefly concerning lean meat for processing, which constitutes most of what is imported from South America and Oceania. In addition, it will almost certainly result in higher prices for processed products (hamburgers, meatballs, etc.) passed on to consumers.

The U.S. will go from an average tariff of 2.5% to one of 10%, which will likely drive inflation upward and could have repercussions for economic activity. The markets’ initial reaction was negative: the S&P 500 fell 3.4% and the Nasdaq 3.6%.