Trump's new sweeping tariffs take effect

US President Donald Trump's sweeping new tariffs on countries around the world took effect on Thursday, escalating his trade war.

"It's midnight. Billions of dollars in tariffs are now flowing into the United States of America," Trump said on social media, minutes before the midnight deadline in Washington, reports the BBC.

Previously, the president has hit India with a 50% tariff, which will take effect on August 27 unless it stops buying Russian oil.

Trump has also threatened a 100% tariff on computer chips made abroad as he pushes tech firms to invest in the U.S. This comes as Apple announced a new $100 billion U.S. investment after being pressured by the White House to move more manufacturing to America.

Last week, the Trump administration announced a revised list of import tariffs for dozens of trading partners and extended the deadline for countries to reach agreements with the US until August 7.

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Countries have been racing to reach agreements with Washington to reduce or eliminate what Trump calls "reciprocal tariffs."

His trade policies aim to reshape the global trading system, which he sees as unfairly treating the US.

Export-dependent economies in Southeast Asia are among the hardest hit by the new tariffs. Manufacturing-focused Laos and Burma faced some of the highest tariffs of 40%.

Some experts have said that Trump appears to have targeted countries with close trade ties with China.

Several major economies, including the United Kingdom, Japan and South Korea, have already reached agreements to receive lower tariffs than Trump threatened in April.

The European Union has also reached a framework agreement with Washington, in which Brussels has accepted a 15% tariff on goods from the trading bloc.

Taiwan, a key ally of Washington in Asia, was given a 20% tariff. Its President Lai Ching-te has said the rate is "temporary" and that talks with the US are still ongoing.

Last week, Trump increased the tariff rate on Canada from 25% to 35%, saying the country had "not cooperated" in stemming the flow of fentanyl and other drugs across the US border. 

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The Canadian government says it is taking tough measures against drug gangs.

But most Canadian exports to the U.S. will avoid the import tax because of an existing trade treaty, the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).

What are the new tariffs like?

Before Thursday, almost every good was subject to a minimum tariff of 10%. Now tariffs vary significantly from country to country.

The highest tariffs imposed are on goods from Brazil (50%), Laos (40%), Burma (40%), Switzerland (39%), Iraq (35%) and Serbia (35%).

Another 21 countries also face tariffs higher than 15%. This includes several countries that the US relies heavily on for a variety of goods, such as Vietnam (20%), India (25%), Taiwan (20%), and Thailand (19%).

Goods from India could also be subject to an additional 25% tariff, on top of the one imposed because of an executive order Trump signed on Wednesday that seeks to penalize India for buying oil from Russia. The second tariff is scheduled to take effect on August 27.

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Goods from thirty-nine countries, as well as members of the European Union, are subject to 15% tariffs, according to a list the White House released last week. Except for Canada and Mexico, all other countries from which the U.S. imports goods will continue to face a minimum tariff of 10%, although with some exceptions.

Goods from Mexico and Canada are exempt from tariffs if they comply with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement. If not, goods from Mexico are subject to tariffs of 25%, while goods from Canada are subject to tariffs of 35%, up from 25% previously.