Trump to reduce tariffs on bananas, coffee and other food items to try to regain the initiative in cost-of-living crisis

The United States will reduce tariffs on some food and textile products from Argentina, El Salvador, Ecuador and Guatemala, according to administration sources. President Donald Trump has announced the signing of several trade agreements with these countries that will lower the price of bananas, coffee, beef and citrus fruits, among other products.

The Republican president is seeking to regain the initiative in the fight against the rising cost of living, one of the main issues of the recent campaign for mayor of New York, which the Republicans lost decisively to the Zohran Mamdani, a socialist from the Democratic Party.

The new trade agreements that the United States will formalize in a framework agreement with these four countries aim to highlight the U.S. administration’s shift in strategy regarding the cost of living. To this end, it will ease some of its so-called reciprocal tariffs that affect basic consumer goods.

“These deals secure commitments on economic and national security issues to strengthen supply chains and trade partnerships in the region, deepening bilateral trade and investment cooperation to provide American exporters with unprecedented access to markets in Central and South America,” the White House explained in a joint statement with the four Latin American countries.

The note specifies that the United States “will also give Most Favored Nation (MFN)-tariff treatment for certain originating goods from these countries that cannot be grown, mined, or naturally produced in the United States in sufficient quantities.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the measure a few days ago in an interview on Fox News. “You’re going to see some substantial announcement over the next couple of days in terms of things we don’t grow here in the United States, coffee being one of them,” Bessent said. “Bananas, other fruits, things like that. So that will bring the prices down very quickly.”

Last September, the White House issued an executive order anticipating a possible reduction in import tariffs on some items not produced in the United States when trade agreements were reached with other countries.

The joint statement specifies that tariffs will also be reduced on other products detailed in a list of the executive order published in September, as reported by The New York Times, which notes that the White House is preparing tariff exemptions for hundreds of products in order to relieve the strain caused on households by the rising cost of living.

Following the recent electoral setbacks, when Republicans also lost the governorships of Virginia and New Jersey and other local elections, Trump ordered his trade team to identify products in the shopping basket that were not produced in the United States so that tariffs could be lowered.

The partial withdrawal of Trump’s tariffs in these countries represents a step back in his trade policy at a time when the Supreme Court is reviewing the legality of the methods used by the president to impose the import duties. In the first hearing on the case, the Supreme Court justices expressed doubts about the legality of the tariffs, although they have not yet reached a decision.

Argentina will provide preferential market access for U.S. goods exports, including certain medicines, chemicals, machinery, information technology products, medical devices, motor vehicles, and a wide range of agricultural products.

El Salvador will reform non-tariff barriers to allow the acceptance of vehicles and auto parts manufactured according to U.S. motor vehicle safety and emissions standards, as well as certifications for medical devices and pharmaceutical products.

Guatemala has committed to facilitating digital trade, for example, by refraining from imposing digital services taxes or taking other measures that discriminate against U.S. digital services or U.S. products distributed digitally.

Ecuador will remove or decrease a range of tariff barriers across key goods sectors, including tree nuts, fresh fruit, pulses, wheat, wine, and distilled spirits, and fully eliminate a variable tariff on many agricultural products it had imposed. “These actions will create commercially meaningful market access opportunities for U.S. exports, supporting high-quality American jobs,” argued the statement.

The framework agreements will be finalized in about two weeks and are expected to exempt specific products rather than reduce existing reciprocal tariffs, according to a senior Trump administration official, as reported by Bloomberg. The White House expects retailers and wholesalers to pass any benefits on to U.S. consumers, the official added.

U.S. tariffs on other products from those countries will remain unchanged: 15% for Ecuador and 10% for Argentina, Guatemala and El Salvador. In addition, those countries will reduce regulations and licensing requirements for U.S. companies and coordinate trade with non-market economies like China with Washington.

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