Kiribati

The other direction

What America sells to Kiribati

$2M in 2025 — a trade rupture cuts both ways, for American producers as well as American prices.

Policy in motion

Tariff status: a moving target

No U.S. tariff action names Kiribati. These are the universal measures — applied to every country without a country-specific arrangement — that set its treatment.

1. 2026-04-06

   Section 232 metals coverage expanded

   In effect

   The April 2026 proclamation strengthening Section 232 actions on aluminum, steel, and copper expanded derivative-product coverage for all countries, keeping the general metals rate at 50%.

   91 FR 18201 →

2. 2026-02-24

   IEEPA reciprocal tariffs terminated — replaced by 10% Section 122 surcharge

   In effect

   Executive Order 14389 (Ending Certain Tariff Actions) terminated the IEEPA tariff duties — including the EO 14257 reciprocal baseline — effective February 24, 2026. A flat 10% Section 122 temporary import surcharge (Proclamation 11012 of February 20, 2026) replaced them, leaving the universal rate unchanged at 10% on a different statutory basis. Section 122 caps such surcharges at 150 days, so this 10% surcharge is scheduled to lapse on or about July 23, 2026 absent further action (the administration has signaled it could raise the rate toward the 15% statutory maximum).

   91 FR 9437 →

3. 2025-11-13

   Agricultural products exempted from reciprocal tariffs

   In effect

   Executive Order 14360 of November 14, 2025 removed reciprocal duties from certain agricultural products listed in its annexes (coffee, cocoa, bananas, and other goods the U.S. does not produce in sufficient quantity), retroactive to November 13, 2025 — for all countries subject to the reciprocal tariff.

   90 FR 54091 →

4. 2025-06-04

   Section 232 steel and aluminum duties doubled to 50%

   In effect

   The June 3, 2025 proclamation raised Section 232 duties on steel and aluminum articles and derivatives from 25% to 50% for all countries, effective June 4, 2025.

   90 FR 24199 →

5. 2025-04-05

   Universal 10% reciprocal baseline takes effect

   In effect

   Executive Order 14257 (signed April 2, 2025) imposed a 10% ad valorem reciprocal duty on imports from all trading partners, effective April 5, 2025. Countries without a higher Annex I rate remain at this baseline.

   Federal Register · 2025-06063 →

6. 2025-03-12

   Section 232 steel and aluminum duties set at 25% for all countries

   In effect

   Proclamations of February 10, 2025 terminated all country exemptions and quota arrangements and applied 25% Section 232 duties to steel and aluminum imports from every country, effective March 12, 2025.

   90 FR 9817 →

Reference

The country itself

Australia Oceania · Geography, people, economy, and government — public-domain data from the CIA World Factbook.

Kiribati is made up of three distinct island groups -- the Gilbert Islands, the Line Islands, and the Phoenix Islands. The first Austronesian voyagers arrived in the Gilbert Islands as early as 3000 B.C., but these islands were not widely settled until about A.D. 200 by Micronesians. Around 1300, Samoans and Tongans invaded the southern Gilbert Islands, then known as Tungaru, bringing Polynesian cultural elements with them. Later arrivals of Fijians brought Melanesian elements to the Gilbert Islands, and extensive intermarriage between the Micronesian, Polynesian, and Melanesian people led to the creation of what would become Gilbertese cultural traditions by the time Europeans spotted the islands in the 1600s. The Phoenix Islands and Line Islands were both visited by various Melanesian and Polynesian peoples, but their isolation and lack of natural resources meant that long-term settlements were not possible. Both island groups were uninhabited by the time of European contact. Kiribati experienced sustained European contact by the 1760s; all three island groups were named and charted by 1826. American whaling ships frequently passed through the islands, and the UK declared a protectorate over the Gilbert and nearby Ellice Islands in 1892, in an attempt to block growing US influence. Phosphate-rich Banaba Island was annexed to the protectorate in 1900. In 1916, the protectorate became a colony, and some Line Islands were added in 1916 and 1919, with the final ones added in 1972. The Phoenix Islands were added to the colony in 1937, and the UK agreed to share jurisdiction of some with the US because of their strategic location for aviation. During World War II, the islands were occupied by Japanese forces but were ejected by US amphibious assaults. The Ellice Islands became its own colony in 1974 and was renamed Tuvalu for “eight standing together” in 1975. The Gilbert Islands became fully self-governing in 1977 and independent in 1979 under the new name of Kiribati, the Gilbertese spelling of Gilberts. The US relinquished all claims to the sparsely inhabited Phoenix and Line Islands in a 1979 treaty of friendship. In 2012, Kiribati purchased a 22 sq km (8.5 sq mi) plot of land in Fiji for potential eventual resettlement of its population because of climate change, and in 2014 Fijian Prime Minister Voreqe BAINIMARAMA said residents of Kiribati would be welcome to relocate to Fiji if their country is swamped by rising sea levels.