Market Flux Event
Trump Imposes 100% Tariffs on Sensitive Drones, Wins De Minimis Court Fight, and Orders Navy Back to Steam Catapults
President Trump took three sweeping unilateral actions on August 13, capping a day of overlapping trade and defense moves. On tariffs, the White House announced a 100% duty on certain sensitive drone imports to counter China, a 25% tariff on smaller drones, and a 15% tariff on drones and components from the EU, Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea, and Switzerland. Separately, the U.S.
Court of International Trade handed the administration a legal victory, ruling that Trump's suspension of the de minimis exemption for packages worth $800 or less is lawful under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. The exemption's elimination had already generated more than $1 billion in duty payments by the end of 2025, according to Customs and Border Protection. On defense, Trump signed a National Security Presidential Memorandum directing the Navy to tear out its Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System and revert to traditional steam catapults on aircraft carriers, a reversal the Navy had resisted for years.
The memorandum also directs the Pentagon to pursue direct investment in the American shipbuilding industrial base to address long-term problems in Navy shipbuilding and ship repair. The catapult switch is expected to cost billions of dollars.
© AI-generated summary is provided by Market Flux
Sources
- FirstSquawkTRUMP HAS ORDERED THE NAVY TO RESTORE OLD TECH IN AIRCRAFT CARRIERS, COSTING BILLIONS, WITH TRUMP EXPECTED TO SIGN A MEMORANDUM AS SOON AS TODAY DIRECTING THE CHANGE - WSJ, CITING SOURCES
- WsjTrump Orders Navy to Restore Old Technology in Aircraft Carriers, Costing Billions
- Zerohedge*TRUMP IMPOSES 100% TARIFF ON CERTAIN SIZE DRONES
- BloombergTrump Imposes 100% Tariffs on Certain Drones, Countering China
- ReutersTrump administration to impose tariffs on drone imports, White House says
- AJENewsTrump imposes tariffs on drone imports, including 100% on certain sensitive drones and 25% on smaller ones, while drones and components from the EU, Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea and Switzerland face a 15% tariff, says White House. More on
- BusinessThe top 100% rate will apply to drones of a certain size or those that posses national-security capabilities, according to a White House statement
- InvestingTrump administration imposes sweeping tariffs on foreign drone imports
Show 8 more
- BNNBloombergTrump’s White House says it’s losing US$19B-US$26B a year in revenue as countries dodge tariffs
- Seeking AlphaTrump slaps tariffs on drone imports, says U.S. too reliant on foreign sources
- MarketsdayThe Iran war risks bringing the G7′s fastest-growing economy to a halt The U.K. economy is showing further signs of a long-awaited rebound, but the picture is complicated by the fallout from the Iran war and high energy prices.
- BbcUS says dozens of countries helped China dodge Trump's tariffs
- ReutersBizPresident Trump said he will impose tariffs on imports of drones and their components, including from some key US allies, with the Trump administration saying the country was ‘too reliant’ on foreign sources of drones. More here:
- Unusual_WhalesLarry Kudlow said he had spoken to Trump about indexing capital gains to inflation, as well as making changes to capital gains taxes on home sales that would shield more of homeowners’ profits from taxes. Read more:
- StaunovoPresident Donald J. Trump Bolsters National Security and Strengthens U.S. Supply Chains by Imposing Tariffs on Drones and Their Parts and Components
- C_BarraudWhite House says transshipped goods cost $19 billion to $26 billion in lost tariffs - Reuters