Trump is threatening the BRIC country with 100 percent tariffs if they undermine the US dollar

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump threatened Saturday to impose 100 percent tariffs on a bloc of nine nations if they weaken the U.S. dollar.

His threat was aimed at countries in the so-called BRIC alliance, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.

Turkey, Azerbaijan and Malaysia have applied for membership and several other countries have expressed interest in joining.

While the U.S. dollar is by far the most widely used currency in global business and has weathered challenges to its dominance in the past, members of the alliance and other developing countries say they are tired of America’s dominance of the global financial system.

According to the IMF, the dollar represents about 58% of the world’s foreign exchange reserves, and major commodities such as oil are still primarily bought and sold in dollars. However, the dollar’s dominance is threatened by the BRICS countries’ growing share of GDP and the alliance’s intention to trade in non-dollar currencies – a process known as dedollarization.

Trump said in a Truth Social post: “We demand a commitment from these countries not to create a new BRICS currency nor to support any other currency to replace the mighty US dollar or they will face 100 percent tariffs “And so they should.” Expect to say goodbye to selling to the wonderful U.S. economy.”

At a summit of BRIC nations in October, Russian President Vladimir Putin accused the United States of “weaponizing” the dollar and called it a “big mistake.”

“It is not us who refuse to use the dollar,” Putin said at the time. “But what can we do if they won’t let us work? We are forced to look for alternatives.”

Russia has specifically pushed for the creation of a new payment system that would provide an alternative to the global banking messaging network SWIFT and allow Moscow to evade Western sanctions and trade with partners.

Trump said there was “no chance” BRIC would replace the US dollar in global trade and any country that tried to do so “should say goodbye to America”.

Research shows that the US dollar’s role as the main global reserve currency is not in jeopardy in the near future.

An Atlantic Council model assessing the dollar’s place as the main global reserve currency says the dollar is “safe in the short and medium term” and continues to dominate other currencies.

Trump’s latest tariff threat comes after he threatened to impose 25% tariffs on everything imported from Mexico and Canada, as well as an additional 10% tax on goods from China, to force countries to do more to stop the flow of illegal immigration drugs into the USA

He has since spoken by phone with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who said Thursday she was confident a tariff war with the United States could be averted. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau returned home Saturday after meeting with Trump, with no assurances that the president-elect will back away from threatened tariffs against Canada.

By FATIMA HUSSEIN, Associated Press