President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs have added a total of $500 million to US coffers since April 5 — a fraction of the $3 billion-a-day that he bragged his sweeping levies have generated.
The actual figures were released Wednesday by Customs and Border Protection, the agency charged with collecting all tariffs, including Trump’s “reciprocal” levies, at the point of entry.
CBP said the $500 million from reciprocal tariffs – taxes US firms pay on foreign imports – contributed to “more than $21 billion in total tariff revenue from 15 presidential trade actions implemented since Jan 20, 2025.”
That’s about $245 million for each of the 86 days, through Wednesday, since Trump took office — counting separate duties imposed on aluminum and steel imports, and foreign vehicles.
Trump announced 10% across-the-board tariffs and stiffer reciprocal taxes on key trading partners during his “Liberation Day” event at the White House on April 2. The 10% tariffs went into effect April 5. The 25% levy on foreign cars kicked in April 3.
He paused the higher reciprocal tariffs on all countries on April 9 — except for China, which was slapped with a 145% duty after Beijing retaliated with a 125% on US goods.
The most recently available figures from the Treasury Department also fall far short of the president’s estimate.
According to its daily statement of total deposits, the department recorded $250 million under “Customs and Certain Excise Taxes” on Tuesday, after netting $305 million the previous day.
The discrepancy between what Trump has claimed has been brought in and what the bottom line shows could be due, in large part, to a decrease in imports.
US import bookings on massive container ships dropped 64% from March 24-31 to April 1-8, according to container-tracking software provider Vizion.
Many companies rushed to stockpile goods in the weeks ahead of the tariffs. Now, some may be delaying orders while they use up that inventory and await clarity from Trump’s 90-day pause on the stiff reciprocal tariffs.
Small business owners have said they are pushing off orders for foreign goods because they can’t afford the hefty charges.
Amazon has canceled some orders from China for summer season items, while toymakers are putting off their Christmas imports.
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