(CNN) — President Donald Trump said high tariffs could be here to stay and he’d declare “total victory” if import taxes were as high as 50% a year from now, according to an interview with Time released Friday.
Trump has placed historic tariffs on a wide variety of imports, including a 10% tariff on virtually everything coming into the United States. He has also imposed 25% tariffs on steel, aluminum, autos and many items from Mexico and Canada. But by far the most significant trade action is a tariff of at least 145% on most Chinese goods imported to the United States.
Combined, America’s effective tariff rate now stands at 22.8%, according to Fitch Ratings. That’s by far the highest of any developed country in the world.
As a result, trade has slowed significantly with other countries, immediately punishing importers, exporters and small businesses who have to pay the high tariffs. Trump on Wednesday in …