The U.S. Treasury just got a jolt. In April and May alone, tariff duties raked in $37.8 billion. That’s not a projection. That’s cash in hand. The source? President Trump’s latest round of tariffs targeting steel, aluminum, automobiles, and a wide swath of imports from China, Mexico, and Canada. The numbers are not abstract. They’re printed on customs receipts.
Duties generated $37.8 billion in revenue for the U.S. in April and May, after President Trump imposed new tariffs on steel, aluminum, cars and goods from China, Mexico and Canada pic.twitter.com/p8FLv9IsSU
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) June 19, 2025
The tariff structure is layered. A 10 percent universal baseline now applies to nearly all imports. On top of that, country-specific rates hit harder. Chinese goods face a combined 30 to 55 percent tariff depending on category. Canadian and Mexican steel and aluminum are taxed at 25 percent. Finished cars from both countries are now subject to a 25 percent levy. These rates were implemented under Executive Orders 14257 and 14266, with enforcement beginning in early April.
The revenue spike is not a fluke. According to the Tax Policy Center, the April 2 tariff package alone is projected to generate $3.3 trillion over the next decade if sustained. That’s assuming no rollback and no carve-outs. The short-term haul of $37.8 billion in just two months suggests the machinery is working. Imports are still flowing. Duties are being collected. The Treasury is banking it.
Sources: https://taxpolicycenter.org/features/tracking-trump-tariffs
https://www.tradecomplianceresourcehub.com/2025/06/13/trump-2-0-tariff-tracker/
https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/02/business/canada-mexico-auto-tariffs-trump-dg/index.html
https://www.fortune.com/2025/06/13/trump-tariffs-revenue-wilbur-ross-commentary/
