In starting a process to impose reciprocal tariffs on American trading partners, the White House is sowing uncertainty and risking inflation.

In February 2025, as U.S. President Donald Trump moved to impose new tariffs on imported goods, rumors began to spread online that auto manufacturers Toyota and Honda were planning to shutter manufacturing plants in the U.S as a result. For example, a Snopes reader sent a meme in an email, asking whether its claims were true:

Here’s what you need to know about reciprocal tariffs and who might be impacted by Trump’s plan. Reciprocal tariffs refer to tariffs—the taxes charged on imported goods—the U.S. government plans to levy against global trading partners that are equal to the existing tariffs foreign countries have set against American goods.