Donald Trump
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Amid escalating tensions, the United States President Donald Trump announced on Tuesday that any country that does business with Iran will face a tariff of 25 per cent on any trade with the US.
The new tariff announcement comes when Iran is teetering on the brink as citizens have taken to streets to protest the rise in the cost of living in the Islamic Republic.
This demonstration is one of the stiffest challenges to clerical rule since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and has seen the killing of more than 600 people.
Trump, who has vowed to retaliate with military intervention, wrote on Truth Social: "Effective immediately, any Country doing business with the Islamic Republic of Iran will pay a Tariff of 25% on any and all business being done with the United States of America. This Order is final and conclusive.”
China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and India are Iran's main trading partners and the new tariffs could have drastic impact on their economy.
China
In response to Trump tariffs, China said that it opposed "any illicit unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction".
China is Iran's largest trading partner. Iranian exports to China amounted to $22 billion in 2022, with fuels accounting for more than half of the total, according to the World Bank. Imports from China stood at $15 billion.
In 2025, China bought more than 80% of Iran's shipped oil, according to data from Kpler, an analytics firm. Iranian oil has a limited pool of buyers because of US sanctions that seek to cut off funding to Tehran's nuclear programme.
India
India is among Iran's five largest trade partners in recent years. Indian exports to Iran include basmati rice, fruits, vegetables, drugs and other pharmaceutical products.
Moreover, India and Iran have undertaken a joint project to develop the Chabahar port in 2015.
This 25 per cent tariff will add upon the US reciprocal tariff of 25 per cent and an additional 25 per cent tariff on India for importing Russian crude oil, resulting in a total levy of 75 per cent.
India's total bilateral trade with Iran stood at $1.34 billion for the first 10 months of 2025.
Turkey
Iran's exports to Turkey hit $5.8 billion in 2022, with imports amounting to $6.1 billion, according to the World Bank.
Germany
Iran's exports to Germany stood at $178 million in 2022, while imports totalled $1.9 billion.
South Korea
South Korea's exports to Iran between January and November 2025 were marginal at $129 million, while imports stood at $1.6 million during the same period, according to data from the Korea International Trade Association.
(With Reuters inputs)