Trump Lifts Tariffs on Coffee, Beef, and Tropical Goods to Ease Prices
President Donald Trump signed a sweeping executive order Friday eliminating tariffs on a range of imported goods — including beef, coffee, and tropical fruits — in a bid to reduce food costs for American consumers.
The decision came as frustration over rising prices continued to mount. After voters in recent off-year elections identified economic struggles as their top concern, resulting in strong Democratic showings in key states like Virginia and New Jersey, the administration moved quickly to show action on inflation.
Announcing the order aboard Air Force One, Trump revealed that the United States had reached framework agreements with Ecuador, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Argentina to scale back import levies on agricultural products from those nations. The White House described the move as part of a larger push to bring down grocery costs while maintaining fair trade relationships across the hemisphere.
When asked if more tariff reductions were in the works, Trump indicated he believed the latest action would be sufficient. “I don’t think it’ll be necessary,” he said. “We just did a little bit of a rollback. The prices of coffee were a little bit high, now they’ll be on the low side in a very short period.”
Trump noted that this week’s adjustments were targeted specifically at easing costs for consumers. “We just did a little bit of a rollback,” he repeated, explaining that Americans could expect to see cheaper coffee and related goods soon thanks to the removal of import duties.
The president had hinted earlier in the week that coffee tariffs might soon be reduced, saying it was time to “help increase its importation.” His administration has consistently argued that tariffs do not necessarily drive consumer prices upward, a claim that has drawn debate among economists.
Many of the commodities included in the new executive order — such as tropical fruits and certain types of coffee — are not produced domestically, making them logical candidates for tariff relief. But beef, a staple of the American diet, has been at the center of growing concern as prices have surged to record highs.
Trump acknowledged that his own tariffs on Brazilian beef had contributed to those elevated costs and said Friday’s move was intended to correct that. “The prices of coffee were a little bit high, now they’ll be on the low side,” he reiterated, expressing confidence that consumers would soon feel the impact at the supermarket.
{Matzav.com}
