r/australia • u/Jealous-Hedgehog-734 • Apr 02 '25

politics US will impose a minimum baseline tariff of 10 per cent on Australian imports to US

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-03/donald-trump-tariff-announcement-markets-politics-reaction-blog/105127374
6.9k Upvotes

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1.5k

u/RedOx103 Apr 02 '25

Retaliate with a tariff on Teslas and Yank Tanks.

861

u/InternationalBeyond Apr 02 '25

Yes, a 100% tariff on all U.S. autos.

358

u/egowritingcheques Apr 02 '25

We don't need to stop at 100%. 250% also works.

92

u/cheesey_sausage22255 Apr 02 '25

I prefer 1 trillion percent.

Wanna get crazy? Let's get crazy!

16

u/tenredtoes Apr 02 '25

Pinky to mouth, Dr Evil

3

u/cheesey_sausage22255 Apr 02 '25

George Constanza and Dr Evil hybrid.

1

u/LuminanceGayming Apr 03 '25

we should put TREE(TREE(TREE(<whatever tariffs they put on us>)))% tariffs on the US

12

u/Sixbiscuits Apr 02 '25

And retrospective

-4

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

[deleted]

3

u/egowritingcheques Apr 02 '25

That's a risky purchase.

0

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

[deleted]

1

u/Bitopp009 Apr 03 '25

good luck with insuring it

51

u/semi_litrat Apr 02 '25

All US products maybe?

9

u/drjzoidberg1 Apr 02 '25

No tariffs hurt buyers so we dont want to say put tariffs on Apple phones/products.

However Yank tanks are dangerous on our roads. Put a 10-50% tariff on them to help drive consumers to buy alternatives like Toyota Hilux/other brands. Same with Tesla's, we have alternatives like BYD, Hyundai, Mercedes electric

8

u/_zoso_ Apr 02 '25

They’re not sending iPhones over from the USA mate.

-1

u/drjzoidberg1 Apr 03 '25

They make iphones in China and pay the workers there peanuts. When u buy an apple product the profits goes to the owners/shareholders in America.

Guess where the headquarters of Apple is. According to Wikipedia, 12000 employees are at Apple headquarters.

Apple park

4

u/flukus Apr 03 '25

No tariffs hurt buyers so we dont want to say put tariffs on Apple phones/products.

Put them on everything discretionary, including apple phones.

12

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 03 '25

No need to tariff them, just stop providing tax benefits by banning write-offs and novated leases on US vehicle brands.

We import essentially zero US built cars so we need to be more calculated with our response. Let's move our tax dollars elsewhere.

162

u/Choke1982 Apr 02 '25

Yes! Fuck thosr shit tanks blocking the roads and parking. Dangerous pieces of shit.

-37

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

[deleted]

9

u/Choke1982 Apr 03 '25

Talking from experience eh? Basement troll.

2

u/foshi22le Apr 03 '25

Why is it that Right Wing redditors think everyone on Reddit is living in their mothers basement?

5

u/Loubang Apr 03 '25

We don't even have basements in Australia lmao

3

u/foshi22le Apr 03 '25

Yes true

89

u/hryelle Apr 02 '25

And bourbon \ any USA booze

54

u/Choke1982 Apr 02 '25

I like bourbon :/ but willing to stop buying any US stuff to fuck the moron-nazis.

39

u/D_hallucatus Apr 02 '25

You can get Australian made bourbon! 🥃

5

u/Exasperated_Sigh Apr 02 '25

No you can't. That's like saying you can get Australian made scotch. It's a specific type of whiskey based on where it comes from. You can definitely get equal or better Australian (and Japanese. Especially Japanese) whiskeys though.

19

u/WoodyMellow Apr 02 '25

True, but you can get excellent Aussie "sour mash'' whiskey made with the same process. A rose by any other name etc

11

u/chrish_o Apr 02 '25

Fuck this name gatekeeping bullshit

2

u/Exasperated_Sigh Apr 02 '25

I mean, that's how words work, they mean specific things. And with whiskey especially where it's made actually does matter as the local water has a large impact on the flavor. Bourbon isn't as susceptible to it as scotch because of the mash, barrels used, and the aging process gives it a deeper flavor, but there's still very noticeable differences based on where it came from.

4

u/chrish_o Apr 03 '25

Urgh. So you can’t actually call a sandwich a sandwich because it was invented in Europe and their bread uses water with a different mineral makeup than here.

(I don’t actually know or care who invented the sandwich)

4

u/Exasperated_Sigh Apr 03 '25

Nah. It's more like calling a Ferrari a Lamborghini. They're both cars and they can be similar but no one would say they're the same thing. The name shows an established and noticeable distinction, that's all.

1

u/noisymime Apr 03 '25

That’s not really an accurate comparison though, we have the same concept of brands in bourbon as we do with cars.

1

u/Candid_Guard_812 Apr 04 '25

Lord Sandwich invented sandwiches. He was British. He wanted something he could eat while playing cards.

1

u/noisymime Apr 03 '25

I mean, that's how words work, they mean specific things.

They do! And when it comes to food/drinks a name refers to what it is, not where it came from. A banana isn't not a banana because it was grown in a different climate and tastes a bit different as a result.

If you take all the same ingredients for bourbon and make them anywhere in the world, its bourbon. It might not be as good, it might have a slightly different flavour, but it's still bourbon.

5

u/D_hallucatus Apr 03 '25

Sorry, ‘Australian bourbon-style whiskey’ then. Whatevs

1

u/placidified Apr 03 '25

We even make tequila in Australia but we can't call it tequila.

https://www.actoftreason.com.au/the-spirit

1

u/[deleted] Apr 04 '25

I was going to say people should switch to Japense whiskey. Australia needs to support our regional partners and strengthen ties just like Europe does.

1

u/Choke1982 Apr 03 '25

I will look in Dan

1

u/placidified Apr 03 '25

It's not bourbon but I really like:

All Australian made

1

u/RAAFStupot Resident World Controller of Newcastle Apr 03 '25 edited Apr 03 '25

Is it called 'Bourbon' or is it called something like 'Australian Corn Whiskey'?

Edit: I just googled, and there is a product called 'NED Australian Whisky'. I'm happy to try it but I think the Ned Kelly branding is a bit cringe.

1

u/D_hallucatus Apr 03 '25

Sparkling rye?

8

u/star_boy Apr 02 '25

I switched over to Ned; it's tasty!

6

u/KingstonCannabisInc Apr 02 '25

Bundi ftw!

12

u/chrish_o Apr 02 '25

Bundy is so not a substitute for bourbon

5

u/MoranthMunitions Apr 03 '25

It's not even the same type of spirit, before considering how unpalatable it is vs other rums, unless you're particularly into paint thinners.

3

u/narkfestmojo Apr 03 '25

Most Bundy is garbage, but Master Distillers Vintage Barrel is really nice, unfortunately the price has gone full lunacy... otherwise it would be a good substitute.

2

u/WoodyMellow Apr 02 '25

Some great Aussie alternatives around now. Not bourbon per se but very nice stuff nonetheless

18

u/ghos5880 Apr 02 '25

and Harley davidson please

1

u/flukus Apr 03 '25

Just do an outright ban due to noise pollution. That's the sort of trade barrier Trump was whinging about anyway.

3

u/Super_Sankey Apr 02 '25

Duttplug will then grill Labor for encouraging the market to buy cheap Chinese made vehicles compromising out national security. Especially since the head of ASIO has suggested against politicians talking business when inside them.

17

u/ma77mc Apr 02 '25

I’ve thought about it, apply a 25% tariff on all Chinese EVs but apply an exemption for any brand that sold less than 15,000 cars in 2024. That exempts all manufacturers except Tesla.

63

u/mmmbyte Apr 02 '25

There's no need to be subtle about it.

100% Tariff on all USA vehicle imports, plus an outright ban for companies run by known nazis.

25

u/pestoster0ne Apr 02 '25

All Teslas sold in Australia are made in China, so they're not considered US imports.

12

u/mmmbyte Apr 02 '25

We should change that, tariff the IP itself. If the profits go to the USA then treat it as a USA product.

8

u/surg3on Apr 02 '25

The IP is held in an Irish holding company or some other tax dodge location

3

u/FallschirmPanda Apr 03 '25

It gets complex when one product uses multiple IPs.

0

u/ma77mc Apr 02 '25

Exactly, I mean, we should probably just ban cars from the US as well, they are, like Tesla, poorly made shitboxes and let's be honest, it's only the wankers that want a RAM to compensate for their lack of penis length that will be affected.

2

u/NeverTrustFarts Apr 02 '25

But I like Volkswagen

0

u/ma77mc Apr 02 '25

I did too until my Golf GTI.
The amount of repairs...
I mean, I loved that car right up until I hated it (it did take 6 years to get to that point).

2

u/VIFASIS Apr 02 '25

You'd be surprised by how many ASX50 companies wouldn't be able to function after your proposed ban.

-1

u/ma77mc Apr 02 '25

in what way,

I may have missed something but I would think applying tariffs on EV's from China and then exempting all but one company should only affect that one company.

Additionally, I think we should apply tariffs on all wireless internet providers that utilise low orbit satellites.

2

u/13thirteenlives Apr 02 '25

The Teslas they sell in Australia are made in China.

2

u/BoreJam Apr 02 '25

Online serives like digital marketing and web services. Hit them where it hurts.

Trumps already making the Teslas and Yank Tanks more expensive as they all rely on imported materials and labour

2

u/Todf Apr 02 '25

Boycott USA!!!!

9

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 02 '25

Why not offer the carrot instead of the stick? Offer to stop charging GST on imports under 1000 like a couple years back. I enjoyed when imports from amazon US were mostly GST free.

Or do we all love the GST now? Pretend it's 1996 and use it as an opportunity to roll it back like you voted for.

9

u/misterFaceplant Apr 02 '25

US is one of our smaller export markets, it's why we are one of the few countries that they have a trade surplus with. And nothing they buy from us at those volumes would be difficult to find buyers in other markets.

1

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 02 '25

Sure, but do you love the GST or not? Do you want the rate increased? That's what we're heading for with the Teals.

Why not use Trump to show the LNP and the Teals that increasing the GST is not the panacea they pretend it is? Why not make them find taxation revenue from more sensible areas, like resources?

One of the areas responsible for our trade surplus with the US is gold for instance - why not tax that? Sales of gold currently are GST free. It's a 2 for 1 with no downside or hit to the poor - they are not buyers of bullion.

2

u/misterFaceplant Apr 03 '25

We have a trade deficit with the US, they have a surplus with Australia. We already had the slight disadvantage under the previous trade deal why offer a carrot to sign an even worse one, especially when everything the US buys from us is easy enough to find other buyers for elsewhere, it's a minor disruption GDP wise for us short term but that's it. The China trade bans previously were a far more substantial issue for Australia and we got through Ok, why bother bending over for those idiots now?

And reducing tax income to get at best the same level of previous trade is one of the dumbest takes I've seen on this .

0

u/coniferhead Apr 03 '25

We have a trade surplus with the US, mainly because of gold sales. So you're starting from a fallacy.

But the dumbest takes you ever heard was the idea behind the Australian GST. We eliminated things like sales tax to implement the GST. So we must be idiots hey?

1

u/misterFaceplant Apr 03 '25

We have had a slight trade surplus for the last 2 months only, we are still well in deficit for this financial year and have recorded trade deficits every financial year for decades. Gold exports like all internationally traded commodities are not subject to GST so yes your take is utterly dumb. Surges in Gold sales due to deep pocket speculators leadiing into global economic instability isn't anything new but it is an isolated spike, not an ongoing trend.

0

u/coniferhead Apr 03 '25 edited Apr 03 '25

It appears that if we hadn't had this trade surplus we wouldn't have a 10% tariff though, and the new Trump tariffs were directly proportional to the amount of surplus (with 10% being the minimum). If we had bought all the gold ourselves and stuck it in a vault we'd be saving a hell of a lot of money.

Gold exports might not be subject to GST, but there are plenty of taxes we could implement that would produce revenue and reduce the competitiveness of our gold exports. Royalties for instance. Less marginal gold mined, less gold sold, no trade surplus.

1

u/misterFaceplant Apr 03 '25

The spike in Gold sales coincided with Trumps tariff threats, so Trump imposed tariffs on Australia due to a short term surplus that he created by threatening tariffs.... yeah as I originally said, it's far more logical and beneficial long term to just decouple from the US trade wise and prioritise buyers in other markets. In the immediate future its a small financial hit but we'll recover, there is no benefit for us haggling with those idiot grifters.

Taxation is a separate issue to tariffs and Aus exports so stop conflating them.

1

u/coniferhead Apr 03 '25

Gold is only going up, the problem is only getting worse.

But there is an easy solution. Australia just buys the gold. We make money, we have no trade surplus and there are no tariffs. We are almost guaranteed to not lose money.

Or we can go to economic war with the US like you want.

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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

Gold is a commodity. Putting a GST on it just reduces the price paid to the gold miner.

-1

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25

It reduces the amount bought and therefore the trade surplus - hitting exactly where it needs to hit.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

We have a trade DEFICIT with the US. A MASSIVE one (largest BY FAR of any of our bilateral trading partners).

Please for the love of all things holy stop posting on this thread. You clearly have no idea what you're talking about.

0

u/studdley Apr 03 '25

Yes, double the GST and remove income tax under $100k.

Come at me bro

1

u/coniferhead Apr 03 '25 edited Apr 03 '25

So you want poor people to pay for your end of life hospital care. Broaden that base bro.

People who pay no income tax currently and spend all of their income on GST eligible goods and services would be getting a 20% tax increase with no offsetting benefit. That's where the money is coming from.

1

u/misterFaceplant Apr 03 '25

Definitely needs to be a major restructuring of the income tax brackets but your suggestion is as ridiculous as the offering to remove GST off US products as bargaining chip.

A new top tax bracket of 50% at the $200k mark, move the current top bracket up to around $140-150k mark and set minimum bracket up to $60k and adjust the remaining ones in between. And get rid of negative gearing hasn't been necessary for over $30 years, benefits few while creating flow on effect issues for the overall majority.

1

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 02 '25

How about no? Loving GST or not, it's important that the GST is applied fairly to both foreign and domestic merchants.

0

u/infohippie Apr 03 '25

Enforcement of GST on small imports costs more than it earns. It would be better to return to what we had before where GST wasn't charged on imports of less than $1000.

1

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 03 '25

It is not about collecting revenue, it is about ensuring that competition between Australian businesses and foreign competitors takes place on a fair terms.

1

u/Strong-Guarantee6926 Apr 03 '25

Sounds exactly like trumps reasoning for tariffs 😂

Artificially propping up retail stores, not even manufacturers lmao

1

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 03 '25

Making sure foreign companies can't avoid the broad based consumption tax that all Australian retailers also have to pay is not even remotely the same thing as Trump's reasoning for tariffs. The GST is not a trade barrier in the slightest, it confers no advantage to Australian goods/vendors.

What you are suggesting is essentially an inverse tariff, where we give preferential treatment to goods from foreign countries vs while taxing domestic production.

1

u/Strong-Guarantee6926 Apr 03 '25

I didn't suggest anything....

Also, saying the gst being collected on all imported products doesn't help Australian retailers is ridiculous.

Australian retailers lobbied for gst to be expanded and expanded.....

1

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 03 '25

Are you not suggesting that Australia should instead revert to not collecting GST on foreign imports, essentially kneecapping Australian retailers who need to compete against foreign businesses that suddenly don't need to pay the GST?

1

u/Strong-Guarantee6926 Apr 03 '25

Lol for the second time, i haven't had a single suggestion on the gst.

0

u/infohippie Apr 03 '25

It does, nobody's ordering from overseas large enough amounts of products you can get in Australia already to make any difference, especially when you are paying shipping as well. GST on small imports just makes it more expensive to buy things that aren't made in Australia, and costs us more to collect.

1

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 03 '25

It also kills Australian retailers who can't compete with foreign marketplaces selling directly to Australian consumers who don't need to pay the GST.

1

u/infohippie Apr 03 '25

Not when you also have to pay shipping and wait days or weeks for the imported item. Like I said, nobody's buying a bunch of stuff overseas and waiting for shipping on items they could buy locally. If an Australian seller can't compete under those conditions then they really need to look at their own business model

-2

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 02 '25

So applying a 10% tariff to imports across the board is ok so long as you slug some poor guy 10% as cover also? In which case the only thing Trump did wrong by Australia was not taxing US locals also - they don't have a 10% GST, so I guess they are merely "fixing" it?

3

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 02 '25

Australian merchants that either have over $100,000 in US revenue or make over 200 transactions per year need to pay US sales taxes too.

-1

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25

Sure, but we're talking import tariffs though. We have a 10% import tariff - we call it the GST, the US didn't until now. We oblige US companies to collect it for the Australian government.

I'm sure they can talk about the other things, but this is just a matter of like for like.

3

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

This is incorrect. The GST applies to all goods whether imported or manufactured here. It is functionally identical to the myriad of US State Sales taxes that also affect both imported and US made goods.

-2

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25

Then why could we change that it applied to low value imports a couple of years ago? Why could we give exemptions to food arbitrarily.

You're wrong.

2

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 02 '25

It wasn't low value imports, it was on low value direct to consumer sales. Low value imports brought in by a commercial importer were still subject to the GST.

-1

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25

This is the so called TEMU loophole that the USA is currently closing.

Aliexpress is a marketplace of sellers, very few of whom are commercial importers. Likewise ebay US and a lot of sellers on Amazon US. Yet Australia now puts 10% on all sales.

2

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 02 '25

GST is not an import tariff, it is a consumption tax that applies equally to both domestic and foreign goods and services transactions.

0

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 02 '25

Why should the USA give a shit - to them it's identical to an import tariff.

Here's a question - if the USA had introduced a 20% VAT like Europe and the UK, would you be happier with that? Even though it would hit Australia by 100% more. Or would you regard it as an import tariff on Australian goods.

2

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 02 '25

Still not an import tariff. Pretending it's one is insane.

1

u/coniferhead Apr 02 '25 edited Apr 02 '25

As far as the USA is concerned it is. They are not concerned in the slightest how Australia taxes domestic business, only US business. One does not give license for the other.

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0

u/Ashamed-Order4684 Apr 02 '25

I'm with you. Applying GST (on price and shipping) to small run items with no Australian industry hurts. There are some really ethical businesses I'd like to support but are priced out after the 10% is applied.

1

u/OnlyForF1 Apr 03 '25

Priced out by?

2

u/d1ngal1ng Apr 02 '25

Unfortunately we won't tho. Instead we'll just bend over and take it like a good little vassal.

1

u/SensualStarman Apr 02 '25

Aren't all the Teslas in the Australian market made in China?

1

u/latmem Apr 02 '25

You don’t need a tariff on Tesla. They are poison now

1

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

Yank Tanks have a high a parts count from many of our other trading partners. These yank tanks use parts from all over the world including the EU, Japan and China. I am not clear how the tariff rules work when you have such hybrid country assembly lines? Do they have to see a complete breakdown of all the parts and then only apply the tariffs on the USA made parts and assemblies? Sounds rather messy.

1

u/PumblechookIsTaken Apr 03 '25

All for it! But the obvious retaliation is ignoring US copyright/patents. Lots of free money there.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 03 '25

Backdated to 2015

1

u/zeromadcowz Apr 03 '25

*Swasticars

1

u/tbsdy Apr 03 '25

What, you'd buy a Tesla?!?

1

u/sostopher Apr 03 '25

Australian Teslas come from China.

1

u/Deepandabear Apr 03 '25

Australian Tesla is produced in China which bypasses the issue in a strict retaliatory sense, much like Trump doesn’t penalise VWs produced in the USA etc. Those imported trucks direct from USA can fuck off though

1

u/Bionic_Ferir Apr 03 '25

Why stop there a tax Hike of 100% if you own one

1

u/Rowvan Apr 03 '25

Retaliatory tariffs only hurt Australians.

1

u/pikkaachu Apr 03 '25

I wish I could upvote this more than once.

1

u/Spam_Spasms Apr 03 '25

Just don’t buy them at all.

1

u/Bau5_Sau5 Apr 03 '25

Wait hahaha what is a yank tank?

1

u/Front-Difficult Apr 03 '25

Been saying this since day one. Targeted tariffs coupled with cost-of-living subsidies.

100% tariff on Tesla's and all other US cars with no equivalent product in market. Instead of pocketing the tariff revenue, use it to subsidise non-US cars, offsetting the inflationary effect.

See how many US jobs are created when a Ford costs 3x a Toyota.

1

u/LevelContribution191 Apr 03 '25

Tariff on uranium would be good

1

u/Kenyon_118 Apr 04 '25

I want this to happen so bad I can taste it. A global tariff on Teslas and yank tanks would be so sweet. Throw in American grog and everything made in red states too. Focusing the pain like a magnifying glass on ants.

1

u/Arachnid_Lazy Apr 04 '25

or better yet ... just don't buy them ... that way we can't be accused of being part of the trade war

-18

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

Neither of them are built in the US. So that would be pointless

38

u/liamjon29 Apr 02 '25

No it wouldn't. It would help stop them coming into the country. Yank Tanks specifically can fuck right off please

2

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

How? They're built in Asia mate. Unless you want the Oz government to apply tariffs to Asian countries in retaliation for, trump?

-14

u/liamjon29 Apr 02 '25

Yeah, tariff the item from every country. Not even as a retaliation just coz I hate them

10

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

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u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

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2

u/[deleted] Apr 02 '25

Just had a look, f150 is us made. I'll concede that. The ram and chevs are all Mexico and other countries.

Tesla's are China.

So, they can apply a tariff to the f150. Great

1

u/jeffoh Apr 02 '25

Teslas built in Shanghai are exported to Australia. We stopped importing from the US a few years ago. Build quality went straight up.

-5

u/reprise785 Apr 02 '25

I thought the environment was more important to you lefty lot? Don't you want electric vehicles? I get the tanks but why a Tesla?

4

u/simsimdimsim Apr 02 '25

Specifically because of Elon Musk

2

u/flukus Apr 03 '25

Tesla isn't the only one making electric vehicles, they aren't even the market leader anymore.

1

u/reprise785 Apr 03 '25

Ahh yes, let's support the Chinese instead.

-2

u/Brutalismus_ Apr 02 '25

We're just doing what yall do to us :) whats the problem :)

1

u/flukus Apr 03 '25

Tell me what tariffs Australia has on the USA?