AL-Monitor Gulf: Wait and see on tariffs

Trade is the focus of this week’s newsletter, as Gulf countries brace for the potential impacts of President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs set to be enforced on Wednesday. We also take a look at Gulf states' efforts to mediate seemingly intractable global conflicts and the region’s growing diplomatic engagements. 

Leading this week: Wait and see on tariffs 

President Donald Trump displays a signed an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on March 26, 2025 in Washington. (Win McNamee/Getty Images)

President Donald Trump’s fresh round of reciprocal tariffs, expected to drop Wednesday, is destabilizing international stock markets. The Gulf is bracing for Trump’s attempt to cut reliance on foreign goods and the impact tariffs could have on the Gulf Cooperation Council’s exports to the United States, worth $26 billion in 2024 — roughly two times less than US exports into the region.

Details of Trump’s tariffs remain uncertain, but the US President hinted that some countries might be exempted and that not all tariffs would kick in immediately. How regional heavyweights would respond if additional US tariffs were imposed on GCC goods remains unknown.