Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has slammed Donald Trump’s ‘totally unwarranted’ tariffs but said will not reciprocate.
Donald Trump delivered his ‘Liberation Day’ address at 7am (AEDT) on Thursday morning with among several countries singled out by the US President as he announced new global tariffs.
‘It is the American people who will pay the biggest price for these unjustified tariffs,’ Mr Albanese said on Thursday.
The Trump administration released a table of reciprocal tariffs following the President’s announcement, showing Vietnam and Cambodia would be among the worst hit countries.
will cop a tariff of at least 10 per cent on all its goods exported to the US.
‘ won’t reciprocate: This is why our government will not be seeking to impose reciprocal tariffs.
‘We will not join a race to the bottom that leads to higher prices and slower growth.’
The -US free trade agreement, which was signed two decades ago, previously prevented tariffs being applied to goods sent overseas.
During his address, Donald Trump took aim at ‘s ban on fresh beef imports.
‘ bans — and they’re wonderful people, and wonderful everything — but they ban American beef,’ he said.
‘Yet we imported $US3 billion of n beef from them just last year alone.
‘They won’t take any of our beef.
‘They don’t want it because they don’t want it to affect their farmers and you know, I don’t blame them but we’re doing the same thing right now starting at midnight tonight, I would say.’
Meat and Livestock data showed the US was ‘s biggest market for beef exports in 2024, putting it well ahead of Japan, South Korea and China.
Of the beef sent to the United States, 96 per cent of it was the leaner, grass fed variety that was either chilled or frozen.
Mr Albanese insisted that ‘s tough biosecurity laws, as well as its Pharmaceutical benefits Scheme (PBS), were ‘not up for negotiation’.
‘The investments we’re making in the PBS mean that life-saving and life-changing medicines which would otherwise cost people thousands of dollars will be no more than $25 a script,’ the Prime Minister said.
‘Under Labor, that will never be up for negotiation. We don’t want our health system to be more American, we only want it to be more n. ‘
n industry leaders have reacted to the address, with president of the National Farmers’ Federation David Jochinke saying n biosecurity is ‘not for sale’.
‘It is not for negotiation, it is there not only to protect n farmers but also the n public as well,’ he told ABC Radio National’s Breakfast program.
Northern Co-operative Meat Company’s chief executive Simon Stahl also called out the irony of Trump singling out .
‘I think we’re just collateral damage because, if you look at the US beef industry, they’re the largest in the world,’ he said.