United States President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the sweeping tariffs he has imposed on nations around the world were making the country “great and rich again”, as governments raced to strike deals with Washington less than 24 hours before an August 1 deadline.

“Tariffs are making America great and rich again,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.

“One year ago, America was a dead country, now it is the ‘hottest’ country anywhere in the world,” he added.

A day earlier, the US president imposed new tariffs to punish or favour several major trading partners — the latest round of sweeping measures that have roiled markets around the world.

South Korea squeezed in at the last moment, securing agreement on a 15 per cent tariff for exports to the US — significantly below the 25pc that Trump had earlier threatened to introduce.

But Trump also announced crippling 50pc tariffs on Brazil and a 25pc levy on Indian exports, while warning Canada it would face trade repercussions for planning to recognise a Palestinian state.

The 15pc rate on Seoul — Washington’s key security ally — was equivalent to levies determined from US trade deals with Japan and the European Union.

He added that South Korea had committed to investing $350 billion in the US, as well as the purchase of “$100bn worth” of liquefied natural gas (LNG) or other energy sources.

Seoul’s presidential office said tariffs on automobiles — one of Seoul’s key exports — would also stay at 15pc.

Trump hit Brazil with high tariffs as well as sanctions against the judge overseeing a trial of his far-right ally Jair Bolsonaro, who is accused of attempting a coup in Latin America’s biggest economy.

But he delayed its implementation from Friday to August 6, and crucially exempted many products from the prohibitive levy, including orange juice, civil aircraft, iron ore and some energy products.

Canada trade threat

He had threatened to wield US economic might to punish Brazil — and its Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes, in particular — for what he has termed a “witch hunt” against former president Bolsonaro.

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said he would defend “the sovereignty of the Brazilian people in the face of measures announced by the president of the United States”.

Among Trump’s latest announcements were a 25pc duty on Indian goods to begin on Friday — slightly lower than previously threatened — after talks between Washington and New Delhi failed to bring about a trade pact.

India would face an unspecified “penalty” over purchases of Russian weapons and energy as well, Trump said.

“I don’t care what India does with Russia. They can take their dead economies down together, for all I care,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

“We have done very little business with India, their tariffs are too high, among the highest in the world,” he added.

Canada’s trade relations with the US also came under threat after Prime Minister Mark Carney announced plans to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September.

“Wow! Canada has just announced that it is backing statehood for Palestine,” the US president wrote on his Truth Social platform. “That will make it very hard for us to make a trade deal with them.”

‘Big day for America’

He also signed an order on Wednesday to impose previously threatened 50pc tariffs on certain copper products and end a tariff exemption for low-value shipments from abroad.

It left out products like copper ores, concentrates and cathodes, bringing some relief to the industry.

As Trump’s deal deadline neared, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told Fox News that Washington had struck trade deals with Cambodia and Thailand, but provided no details of the accords.

The US tariff hikes due on Friday were initially announced in April as part of a package in which Trump slapped a minimum 10pc levy on goods from almost all trading partners — citing unfair trade practices.

This rate was set to rise to varying levels for dozens of economies such as the European Union, Japan and others, but Washington twice postponed their implementation as financial markets gyrated.

The US leader insisted on Wednesday that the August 1 deadline “will not be extended” any further.

So far, Britain, Vietnam, Japan, Indonesia, the Philippines, the EU and South Korea have reached initial deals with Washington to secure less punishing conditions.

While the US and China earlier slapped escalating tariffs on each other’s products, both sides are working to further a truce maintaining duties at lower levels.

Although Trump has promised a surge in government revenues from his duties, economists warn that higher tariffs can fuel an uptick in inflation and weigh on economic growth.