Washington (dpa)
US President Donald Trump has said he will be setting new tariffs on steel, semiconductors and computer chips from next week, though he declined to say what rate would apply.
Speaking on a flight to Alaska, where he is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin later on Friday, Trump said he would keep the new levies "lower at the beginning" to give companies "a chance to come in and build" in the United States.
"And if they don't build here, they have to pay a very high tariff, which doesn't work. So they'll come and build," he explained.
It comes after Trump last week announced 100% tariffs on Intel chips exported to the US, though he failed to say from when they would apply.
If he delivers on Friday's pledge to implement levies on chip imports from major suppliers, it is likely to increase prices for US consumers across the board, as the vast majority of chips used in electronic devices are produced in Asia.
Trump, whose trade policies have repeatedly triggered market turmoil around the globe since he began imposing sweeping tariffs on a host of trading partners shortly after taking office, had already doubled tariffs on steel and aluminium imports to 50%.