Trump says gold will not face tariffs after customs confusion
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US customs authorities have said gold bars at two standard weights – 1kg and 2.8kg – should be classified as subject to duties.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON – US President Donald Trump said on Aug 11 that gold imports will not face additional tariffs, days after confusion flared on whether recent hikes applied to certain gold bars – threatening to upend global trade of the precious metal.
His comments came after US customs authorities made public a letter saying that gold bars at two standard weights – 1kg and 2.8kg – should be classified as subject to duties.
Mr Trump, without providing further details, on his Truth Social platform said: “Gold will not be tariffed!”
The letter, which was made public last week and dated July 31, was first reported on by the Financial Times, sending the price of gold on the US futures market to a record high.
But a White House official told AFP on Aug 8 that the Trump administration plans to “issue an executive order in the near future clarifying misinformation about the tariffing of gold bars and other specialty products”.
On Aug 8, gold for December delivery hit a record high on the Comex – the world’s biggest futures market.
The concern is whether gold products would be exempt from Mr Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs impacting goods from dozens of economies, including Switzerland, which sees a 39 per cent levy
The 1kg bars are the most common form traded on Comex and comprise the bulk of Switzerland’s bullion exports to the US, the Financial Times said.
The US customs ruling letter, typically used to clarify trade policy, came as a shock amid expectations that gold bars would be classified under a different customs code that spared them from Mr Trump’s countrywide levies.
Gold, seen as a safe haven investment, already reached record highs in 2025 on tariff worries and geopolitical unrest. AFP
