U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order reducing tariffs on Sri Lankan goods to 20%, down from the initially announced 44% in April.
The announcement, made late Thursday by the White House, came just hours before the U.S. trade deadline on August 1.
The revised rate is part of a broader recalibration of America’s tariff structure following Trump’s April 2 declaration of an economic emergency, dubbed “Liberation Day,” during which sweeping tariffs were imposed on imports from dozens of countries.
Sri Lanka’s revised tariff rate follows a series of reductions in July, including a cut to 30%, communicated via official correspondence to Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake on July 10.
The latest decision reduces that further to 20%, offering potential relief to Sri Lankan exporters ahead of a volatile global trade environment.
The new tariff structure includes three key tiers: a 10% base rate for countries running a trade surplus with the U.S., a 15% floor rate for countries with which the U.S. runs a trade deficit, and higher rates—some exceeding 40%—for select countries deemed to have significant trade imbalances.
Sri Lanka is among several developing and middle-income nations benefiting from downward tariff adjustments.
Other notable changes include reductions for Bangladesh (from 37% to 20%), Vietnam (from 46% to 20%), and Cambodia (from 49% to 19%). However, countries such as Switzerland and Laos saw increases or only marginal relief.
A senior White House official described the changes as “measured restraint” in the context of Trump’s broader “America First” trade policy, aimed at correcting what the administration sees as decades of damaging trade deficits.
“The President is using tariffs as a powerful tool to realign global trade in favor of American workers and security,” the statement said.
The new tariff regime will come into effect on August 7, giving U.S. Customs and Border Protection additional time to prepare for implementation.
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