Trump waives new Russia tariffs before Oct. 18 deadline

President Donald Trump waived new Russia-linked tariffs in an Oct. 16 order, preventing the additional duties from taking effect on the Oct. 18 deadline tied to purchases of Russian energy.

The order implements the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. The law provides for a 500% duty on Russian goods and a 100% duty on goods from two groups: the five largest Russian oil and gas importers that knowingly make new purchases on or after Oct. 18, and the five leading facilitators of Russian oil sanctions evasion.

The order waives those additional duties without setting an expiration date. The waivers will remain in place until Trump or the secretary of state determines that further action is appropriate. The Treasury secretary and the U.S. trade representative may be consulted when necessary.

The order does not identify the countries that could fall into either group. It directs U.S. officials to monitor Russian energy purchases and assistance with sanctions evasion, including developments that could lead to changes in the waivers.

Earlier Russia-related sanctions remain in effect within the order’s specified scope. The order preserves measures imposed under executive orders addressing the Russian harmful-foreign-activities emergency as they existed immediately before the 2026 law took effect, including measures against people already sanctioned under those orders.

The Oct. 18 date applies to the authority to impose duties on countries that make qualifying new purchases of Russian energy. The waiver means those additional tariffs will not automatically apply on that date. Future decisions by the administration could change the policy.

In an Oct. 8 speech, Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller identified higher energy costs and potential new tariffs as continuing sources of inflation pressure. He indicated that further interest-rate increases could be needed if economic data continued to support that view.

A 2024 BIS working paper found that U.S. monetary-policy tightening weakened crypto prices and reduced stablecoin market capitalization, while assets held in prime money-market funds increased. Bitcoin was trading at about $81,867.15 on Oct. 18, up 0.57% over 24 hours, according to the source data.