Trump slaps Kenya with 10% reciprocal tarrif on exports to US

President Donald Trump has swung into action and slapped Kenya with a 10 percent reciprocal tariff on Kenyan exports to America.

Trump said the sweeping tariffs are aimed at levelling the playing field in international trade and countering what he called "cheating" in global trade.

The move was part of a trade policy overhaul he announced in his address from the White House Rose Garden on Wednesday, which he dubbed "Liberation Day."

"This is our declaration of economic independence," Trump proclaimed, adding that the new measures will help rebuild the American economy and "prevent cheating" by mirroring the tariffs imposed on U.S. goods abroad.

Trump directly named Kenya among African countries with an existing 10 per cent tariff on American imports.

"We will match that—10 per cent across the board," he said.

"We're slowly bringing America back to greatness."

Kenya charges the U.S. a 10 per cent tariff on American goods, including currency manipulation and trade barriers, per the White House.

Kenya's average import tax stands at 13.8 per cent, with agricultural products facing even steeper rates—up to 60 per cent for milk and 100 per cent for sugar.

The US on Wednesday released the 2025 National Trade Estimate report, which painted a bleak picture of Kenya's trade environment.

The net effect of Trump’s reciprocal tariff will have a major effect on Kenya’s total trade with America, which stood at $1.5 billion in 2024.

Kenya exported goods worth $737.3 million (Sh95.3 billion) to the U.S. in 2024, down 17.5 percent ($156.7 million) from 2023. Most of these exports were apparel, coffee and tea.

This is according to data from the United States Trade Representative’s office.

At the same time, Kenya imported goods worth $782.5 million (Sh.101 billion) from the U.S., up 61.4 percent ($297.8 million) from 2023.

Since May 2000, Kenya has been exempt from tariffs when exporting to the world's largest economy under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which expires this September.

Several African states trading with the U.S. were slapped with the 10 per cent base tariff, such as Rwanda, Burundi, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sudan, Ethiopia and Uganda.

Trump imposed higher tariffs on others like Nigeria (14%), Malawi (17%), Zimbabwe (18%), DRC (11%), Zambia (17%), and Mozambique (16%).