Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni
Rabuka has admitted that his government was not ready for
Donald Trump’s ‘reciprocal tariffs’ unveiled at the White
Hoiuse on Thursday.
The United States will impose a
base tariff of 10 percent on all foreign imports, with rates
between 20 and 50 percent, for countries – and territories –
judged to have major tariffs on US goods.
Rabuka told
The Fiji Times that his government “did not see it
coming”, but added, “now that it has come, we have to make
very, very tough decisions”.
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“The world
is bigger than the United States, so we will have to look at
new sources of imports and new markets for our exports.”
Rabuka was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
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He said
Fiji was fortunate that it had “a lot of friendly nations
around the world” that trade with the country.
“We
don’t have anything to counter with so we will have to
weather the storm and roll with the punches.”
He has
asked local businesses trading with the US to not be
discouraged, the report said.
“There are other markets
out there and the world. Fiji government will spare no
effort in going out and getting those markets established or
re-established.”
In a statement on Thursday, the
Fijian government said it was actively engaging with its US
counterparts through diplomatic and trade channels to seek
clarity on these measures and explore options to mitigate
their impact.
It said it wants to understand how the
63 percent tariff charged on the US, including currency
manipulation and trade barriers, was calculated by the Trump
administration.
The statement said Fiji imposes import
duties of less than two persent on average on all US
imports.
Fijian products such as mineral water, kava,
fish, sugar confectionery, and wood artifacts are key
exports to the US, according to the country’s Finance
Minister Biman Prasad.
He said Fiji imports vital
goods like medical equipment, aircraft parts, and machinery
from the US.
“The imposition of a 32 percent across
the board tariff on Fijian exports into USA is quite
disproportionate and unfair,” he said.
Trump tariffs
on other Pacific Island countries and
territories:
- Papua New Guinea – 10%
tarrifs - Nauru – 30%
- Vanuatu –
22% - Marshall Islands – 10%
- French Polynesia
– 10% - Samoa – 10%
- Tonga –
10% - Micronesia (FSM) – 10%
- Solomon Islands –
10% - Cook Islands – 10%
- Kiribati –
10% - Norfolk Islands – 29%
- Tuvalu –
10% - Tokelau –
10%
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