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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →On April 9, 2025, President Donald Trump announced a 90-day pause in higher country-specific reciprocal tariffs for countries outside China. During the pause, the reciprocal tariff rate for most affected countries was set at 10%. China was treated separately: Trump announced a 125% tariff rate for China. Those were figures in the April 9 announcement, not current tariff-rate guidance.
What did the 90-day tariff pause mean?
The pause temporarily lowered the higher country-specific reciprocal tariff rates announced for certain trading partners outside China. Trump said: “I have authorized a 90-day pause and a substantially lowered reciprocal tariff during this period of 10 percent, also effective immediately.” The White House’s April 9, 2025 statement described the 10% rate as effective immediately.
The pause followed the April 2 reciprocal tariff order, which set a 10% baseline and scheduled higher country-specific rates to begin April 9. Under the April 9 announcement, most affected countries outside China faced the 10% reciprocal rate during the pause rather than those higher country-specific rates.
Was China included in the pause?
No. China was excluded from the pause on higher country-specific rates. In the same April 9 statement, Trump said: “I am hereby raising the tariff charged to China by the United States of America to 125 percent, effective immediately.” That was the rate he announced on that date; it did not remain the final status of the policy.
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The Congressional Research Service’s timeline records that on May 14, 2025, the 125% China rate was reduced for a 90-day period. The April 9 China figure should therefore be understood as a short-lived announcement, not a lasting or current rate. Congressional Research Service, U.S.-China trade timeline.
Which tariffs did the pause not remove?
The pause applied to higher country-specific reciprocal rates; it did not suspend every tariff or import duty. The April 2 order contained product-category exclusions and provisions addressing goods already subject to other specified tariff treatment. Among the exclusions were certain articles subject to Section 232 duties, including steel and aluminum and automobiles and parts, as well as copper, pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, lumber, certain minerals, and energy products. These are scope limits in that order, not a complete inventory of all tariffs in force at the time.
The distinction matters for import costs: a shipment could be outside the higher country-specific reciprocal rate yet still be subject to another applicable duty. The April 2 order is Executive Order 14257.
Why did the administration say it imposed the tariffs?
The administration presented persistent U.S. goods trade deficits and what it characterized as a lack of reciprocity as a national emergency and the rationale for the April 2 framework. That is the administration’s stated justification, not an independently established conclusion.
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What happened after the announcement?
The April 9 announcement was one point in a series of policy changes. The May 14 reduction to the China rate was another; subsequent U.S. actions and U.S.-China trade developments are listed in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s tariff actions index. The April 9 figures cannot establish the rate that applies today.
For a current tariff rate—or a specific import transaction—check current official tariff actions and the applicable Harmonized Tariff Schedule, using the product, country of origin, and customs entry date. A customs professional can help assess transaction-specific treatment. This historical announcement alone is not enough to determine an importer’s present liability.
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