The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad) is urging Donald Trump to exempt the poorest and smallest nations from “reciprocal” tariffs, warning of potential “serious economic harm.”
In a report released on Monday, Unctad lists 28 countries that President Trump has targeted for higher tariff rates above the 10% baseline—despite these nations making up less than 0.1% of the US trade deficit.
Among these nations are Laos, facing a 48% tariff; Mauritius, subject to 40%; and Myanmar, which will encounter a 45% tariff while attempting to recover from a catastrophic earthquake.
The White House surprised many developing nations with the aggressive tariffs announced this month.
Trump accused competing economies of having “looted, pillaged, raped, plundered” the US with unfair trade practices, stating his aim is to establish a level playing field.
Unctad indicated that many of the economies targeted for these high tariff rates are not likely to pose a threat to the world’s largest economy due to their small size and limited export capacity.
Last week, the White House temporarily paused the higher tariff rates for 90 days following a tumultuous impact on global financial markets, maintaining a 10% levy across the board.
However, the administration’s formal stance is that the “reciprocal” tariffs will be implemented, pending negotiations.
“The current 90-day pause presents a chance to reevaluate how we treat small and vulnerable economies – particularly the least developed nations,” Unctad remarked.
“This moment is crucial to consider exempting them from tariffs that offer minimal benefit to US trade policy but pose a serious risk of economic damage.”
Unctad’s analysis showed that many of these small economies are unlikely to create significant demand for US exports, even if the tariffs were reduced, which the White House seems to be suggesting.
For instance, Malawi, with an 18% tariff, imported just $27 million of US goods last year; Mozambique, facing a 16% tariff, imported $150 million; while Cambodia, facing a 49% tariff, bought $322 million.
Unctad’s specialists noted that 36 of these small and impoverished countries are expected to contribute less than 1% of the total US tariff revenue, even if the US did not cut imports after the tariffs were implemented.
The rationale behind the tariff policy is to incentivize the return of manufacturing jobs to the US. However, for many of these tiny countries, their primary exports are agricultural products, which the US is unlikely to find alternatives for—let alone develop a domestic market.
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Unctad pointed out the $150 million in vanilla imported from Madagascar, nearly $800 million in cocoa sourced from Ivory Coast, and $200 million in cocoa from Ghana.
For instance, with Madagascar facing a 47% tariff, the report suggested that the main effect on the US would probably be increased prices for consumers.
Some nations affected by the 10% tariffs—and expected to incur higher rates after the pause—were previously recipients of a US initiative called the African Growth and Opportunity Act.
This program has been in existence since 2000 and provided sub-Saharan African countries with duty-free access to US markets to stimulate economic growth. Prior to Trump’s announcement, as many as 32 nations qualified for this program, which now seems to be dismantled.
Financial markets and manufacturers in developing nations are still grappling with the unpredictable nature of US trade policies.
Over the weekend, Trump created further confusion by seemingly revisiting a Friday announcement that certain high-tech items, including laptops, would be excluded from tariffs.
On his social media platform, Truth Social, Trump stated that no one would be “off the hook,” and that the administration would investigate the “entire electronics supply chain.”
