US President-elect Donald Trump told the so-called BRICS nations that he would seek assurances from them not to create a new currency as an alternative to the US dollar, as well as repeated threats to levy a 100% tariff.
“The idea that the BRICS Countries are trying to move away from the dollar while we stand by and watch is OVER,” Trump said in a post to his Truth Social network on Saturday.
“We require a commitment from these Countries that they will neither create a new BRICS Currency, nor back any other Currency to replace the mighty U.S. Dollar or, they will face 100% Tariffs, and should expect to say goodbye to selling into the wonderful U.S. Economy,” he added.
Trump promised during his campaign that countries will pay a high price for abandoning the US dollar. And he has threatened to use tariffs to ensure compliance. Saturday’s warning gained fresh significance as the president-elect prepares to seize office in January.
Trump and his economic advisers have been exploring how to punish both allies and adversaries who wish to do bilateral trade in currencies other than the dollar. According to sources familiar with the situation, these actions include examining export limits, currency manipulation charges, and trade tariffs.
Trump has long stressed that he wants the US dollar to remain the world’s reserve currency, saying in a March interview with CNBC that he “would not allow countries to go off the dollar” because it would be “a hit to our country.”
The president-elect’s warning against the BRICS nations suggests “how confused the incoming administration is about the global trade and capital system,” according to Michael Pettis, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
“The US cannot both reduce its trade deficit and increase the global dominance of USD because these impose diametrically opposed conditions,” Pettis said on his X account.
The BRICS nations discussed the issue of de-dollarization at a summit in 2023. Backlash against the dollar’s dominance gained traction in 2022 when the US led efforts to impose economic sanctions on Russia.
While some potential dollar rivals, such as the Chinese yuan, have already made gains, this has frequently come at the expense of currencies other than the dollar.
Despite the group’s bluster, the infrastructure that supports the dollar, such as the cross-border payment system, is expected to provide the US currency a significant advantage for decades to come.
Evidence of this came at the bloc’s October conference in Kazan, which was hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin, a proponent of decreasing the dollar’s international importance. Organizers of the gathering recommended guests to bring US cash or euros because non-Russian Mastercard or Visa cards do not work in the nation.
Economic advisers to Trump and his campaign have spoken in particular about targeting the BRICS effort.
Earlier: Trump Aides Discuss Penalties for Nations That De-Dollarize
“There is no chance that the BRICS will replace the U.S. Dollar in International Trade, and any Country that tries should wave goodbye to America,” Trump said Saturday.
The president-elect has already rattled world markets ahead of his second term with threats to levy an additional 10% tariffs on goods from China and 25% tariffs on all products from Mexico and Canada if those countries do not do more to stem the flow of illegal drugs and undocumented migrants across US borders.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met with Trump on Friday to discuss trade and border issues in a bid to tamp down tensions between the two allied nations after the tariff threat.
Other countries, meanwhile, may examine methods to offset the impact of Trump’s tariffs on their economies. According to JPMorgan Chase & Co., China may allow its yuan to fall by up to 10-15% in response to any trade war launched by Trump. The bank forecasts a 5% average depreciation in emerging-market currencies in the first half of 2025.
