Bangladesh is set to come under fresh economic pressure as its exports to the United States are facing a 37 percent "reciprocal tariff" under the Trump administration's sweeping overhaul of global trade policy.
The measures mark President Donald Trump's most aggressive challenge yet to the post-World War II global trading order, drawing alarm from economists and industry leaders worldwide. Under the new plan, a minimum 10 percent tariff will apply to all US imports, while steeper, country-specific "reciprocal" tariffs will target around 60 nations, including Bangladesh. Previously, Bangladeshi goods entered the US market with an average duty of 15.62 percent.
"For countries like Bangladesh and other developing countries, this shift poses significant challenges, as they may face tougher economic conditions under such an uncertain regime," Professor Selim Raihan, executive director of the South Asian Network on Economic Modeling, wrote in a social media post.
Bangladesh's garment sector, a major export industry and critical employment source, is likely to bear the brunt of this policy. The United States has historically been a top export destination for Bangladeshi garments, and such a steep tariff could dramatically reduce competitiveness. The US accounts for 17-18 percent of Bangladesh's total global exports.
Bangladesh's exports to the US rose 1.1 percent year-on-year to $8.4 billion in 2024, driven largely by the country's dominant garment sector, according to USTR data. Bangladesh's imports from the US totalled $2.2 billion in 2024, a 1.5 percent decrease from the previous year. As a result, the US trade deficit with Bangladesh widened to $6.2 billion.
Raihan, who teaches economics at Dhaka University, highlighted the broader implications of the tariff measures. "The world has witnessed today an unprecedented shift in the global trading regime with the introduction of reciprocal tariffs by the Trump administration, signalling a potential end, or at least a significant transformation, of the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) principle that has long been a cornerstone of the GATT/WTO framework," he wrote.
The reciprocal tariff regime applies different rates to different countries and even product categories, making the global trading environment more fragmented and unpredictable. "This makes it increasingly difficult to determine the winners and losers among exporting countries in the US market, while contributing to a more volatile and unpredictable global trading environment," Raihan wrote.
On the eve of Trump's tariff announcement, major clothing retailers, including H&M, expressed concern. H&M CEO Daniel Erver noted that the tariffs will likely lead to increased prices for American consumers, signalling potential knock-on effects even within the US market.
The move is already roiling global markets and is expected to provoke retaliation from major trading partners, further destabilising an international trade system built on decades of lowering tariffs and reducing protectionism.
Experts agree that Bangladesh must respond strategically. Raihan stressed the need for proactive policymaking.
"To navigate this new landscape, Bangladesh must rethink its domestic trade policies, engage actively in the reformation of the global trade system, and enhance trade integration with key partners to secure its position in the evolving world trade order," he wrote.
Asian nations are in the line of fire. Vietnam is seeing a 46 percent tariff, White House documents showed. Other nations slapped with larger tariffs include Japan at 24 percent, South Korea at 25 percent, India at 26 percent, Cambodia at 49 percent and Taiwan at 32 percent.
China, the primary focus of Trump's trade agenda, will face a 34 percent reciprocal tariff, which stacks atop an existing 20 percent fentanyl-related duty and separate levies on categories like solar panels. That brings the effective tariff rate on many Chinese goods to well above 50 percent. Analysts at Bloomberg Economics warn this could result in up to a 90 percent decline in Chinese exports to the US by 2030.
During his 48-minute Rose Garden address, Trump underscored the aggressive nature of the policy by brandishing large visual boards displaying each nation's tariff rate, calling the measures overdue steps to rebalance global trade in favour of the United States.
