Stewart and Faye Resnick – the billionaire owners of Fiji Water – were presumably looking to Donald Trump to improve trading conditions in America for their Wonderful Company and will have been pole-axed by his new administration’s decision today to charge a 32 per cent tariff on every Fijian item imported into the United States.
Water is by far the biggest Fijian export to the US, followed by processed fish and spices. And with no exemptions to the new tariff arrangements, American consumers who’ve developed a taste for “earth’s finest water” are presumably going to have to pay 32 per cent more for each bottle they drink.
It is extraordinarily punitive given that Fiji Water’s main competitors from Europe are to be slugged 20 per cent. And anything coming from the UK, Australia and New Zealand is only attracting a 10 per cent tariff.
Maybe Fiji Water will now make good on their threat during the Bainimarama years, when they faced higher taxes. to move to New Zealand after all?
The Fijian government and companies such as Fiji Water are yet to respond. But we can be sure that there is a huge amount of angst behind the scenes. Because Donald Trump has delivered a body blow to the manufacturers of Fijian goods and the wider economy when it can least afford it.
As Trump undoubtedly sees it, Fiji had it coming, having inflicted a 63 per cent tariff on American goods imported into Fiji. Now the world’s biggest economy has fought back. And we just have to cop it.
As the ancient Greek historian, Thucydides, famously said: “The strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must:” And Fiji, in common with a great many small countries, is going to suffer a great deal. Though the Resnicks – with an estimated fortune of $US 6.3-billion* – will be alright. Wonderful, in fact.
The Resnicks of Beverly Hills with the Prime Minister, Sitiveni Rabuka.
He delivered them a windfall with his seven-year company tax holiday for Fiji Water. Their fellow billionaire, Donald Trump, has delivered them a kick in the guts. Or maybe a splash in the face.
Other Fijian exporters are set to do it much tougher.
* Estimated net worth according to Forbes magazine
Fiji Water will be OK. It is a placed as a premium product overseas. The customers in the US who buy Fiji Water will continue to buy.
However, our dalo and other Fiji products purchased by the Fiji diaspora and Pacific community in the US will be affected the most.
Hopefully the tariff is temporary.
Curious to know what “Optical, photo, technical, & medical apparatus” worth $241K the USA could possibly require exported from Fiji …LOL.
To my knowledge none of those categories are even manufactured in Fiji.
Seems the only possibility could be a cross-shipment from another country of origin??
And no one seems to be able to show what items from USA that Fiji puts a 63% tariff on.
It certainly isn’t Cost U Less goods…what could they possibly be? Sounds false to me.
Can anyone provide a vetted list of those imports?
The chart should be read as Goods that USA exports to Fiji. Or Fijian imports from the USA.
Good point as to what customs code item attracts the 63% rate when imported into Fiji.
And – which entity in Fiji imported from the USA the $69,000 nuclear reactor!!! Or was that an X-ray machine.
You’ve got it backwards Vitian. The chart and the paragraph above it clearly state United States imports FROM Fiji.
There’s no reading it the other way around. $347 Million USD worth of Fiji exports going to the USA.
That’s over $800 million FJD. The majority of that probably water, you know the one.
We have ZERO technical manufacturing sector in Fiji, so I’m left to wonder who exported 1/4 Million USD $$$’s worth of Technical or Medical apparatus.. over Half a Million FJD $$$
All one has to do is look at the state of Fiji hospitals and lack of equipment to realize how hilariously/grossly sad and inaccurate that number must be!
With friends like the USA, who needs enemies?
The chinks are offering free dim sims at their Confucius Institure in Flagstaff !
Roll up folks.
This is what unchecked corruption brings Fiji under Sitiveni and his village idiots.
This is very informative Graham.
Some journalists asked me as well as to what would be impact of rise in tariff by US on our exports. My response was this:
1. Differentiated goods: Like Fiji water and Fiji Tumeric, export volume wont go down. It is not in a competitive market because it is a differentiated product. Most of the tariff rates will be absorbed by US consumers. Maybe some of the tariff rate will be absorbed by the exporter.
2. Other goods: Those which are subject to a competitive market, their demand would certainly go down in the shorter run. The amount of reduction will depend on two factors: (i) Whether the tariff rate is same for competitor countries who are supply into US market. If they are same, than all factors same, the export volume will go down by a small but significant proportion. (ii) How much of the tariff increase are we (exporting country/exporter) willing to absorb. If exporter is absorbing a larger proportion then the competitor exporter, we will have a greater share of the declining market.
Lastly, President Trump’s economists are telling him three things with regard to pressure from domestic consumers:
(i) That if we impose this higher tariff, it wont affect US consumers much as exporters will absorb the tariff…so lets wait and see how much of the increase exporters are absorbing.
(ii) Secondly, they are telling him that the impact will only be on the short run because in the longer run, these countries will lower their tariffs and then we will lower our tariff so consumer pain from higher price will only be for a shorter period.
(iii) US is a large market with wide range of goods …lower/middle income consumers can identify cheaper close substitutes and avoid an significant impact on their disposable income.
Hope this clarifies.
Dr. Reddy
Thank you Dr Reddy. Much appreciated.
The journalists should ask an established exporter! And for this situation one who exports to the USA. No offence but why ask this commentator (Dr Reddy). Who gave an admirable answer but I suspect those with skin in the game, those who battle Fiji Ports, those who battle the Shipping lines, the logistics pitfalls, the suffocating regulatory compliance on a daily or weekly basis etc etc would disagree.
Where is super star finance minister? He got some explaining to do
It’s not going to affect this billion dollar company. They already milking Fiji through this corrupt government and have made billions and possibly even given thousands in return to select corrupt Fijian Government officials and Richard the means Naidu. Nothing is free and one can only imagine why Baimaan, Richard and Rambo would have given tax breaks to Fiji Water – and what they got in return for this favor.
Karma is a bitch though…and it’s a bitch slap from Trump to these arseholes. The country is already f**ked and it’s only going to get worse for the common man.
No worries. Did the Oval Office consult the man with the means?
One phone call from RN will have Washington DC quaking in their boots.
Another decisive call from Baiman to the Capital will have humpty dumpty sh!t himself and reverse course.
Er, I think not.
The experts are predicting that if the tarrifs go ahead then the US will shrink into a recession that will take them a year to get out of.
Although Trump is prone to change his policies, depending which side of the bed he gets out of, there is no way that he will back down from an idea that he thinks is right, and he believes that he is punishing every country that he feels has taken advantage of the US in the past.
He might eventually realise that the people he is punishing with his tarrifs are the people that he convinced with his lies, to vote him into power.
Fiji Water doesnt nèed to worry – Richard Naidu is using Mr 5% ( Mr Pramesh Sharma ) who knows Elon Musk via introduction from Minister Manoa Cum- Cum- Either, to lobby for temporary PANI relief for Rambo’s clown. They can also call upon Queen of Tarts who is well experienced in America. In all honesty, it’s the smaller industries namely foods related who will suffer – Small FJ businesses make the economy successful as money stays in Fiji, not corporates like Fiji Water, Banks and insurance companies whose profits are sent overseas.
Mr 5% (Pramesh Sharma) may revise his rates! Mr 32%?
President Donald “Duck” would not even know where Fiji is on the map.
I will not be surprised if he could not point out where the USA was on the map.
In any case, where is Fiji Water on the list given above. Is it part of the first line item, Beverages, Spirits and Vinegar? If so, only $217m. I thought Fiji Water was much bigger than that. But in the overall scheme of things we are talking about peanuts from the USA prespective. In total $347m is still not a big number even from Fiji’s point of view. Those Fijians living in the US who will now have to pay more for their dalo and kava, I suggest this is the time to give it up. You are what you eat. And from what you have been eating all your life, it has made you all stupid, so change your diet I suggest.
Doesn’t make any difference to the owners of Fiji water.
They don’t pay tax in Fiji and tariffs that they will pay in America will square things up for them.
They will still make huge profits.
Make America wealthy, which Trump wants and bonus is all being Americans.
They may even get away with exceptions as owners are Americans running business in Fiji.
Who knows???
For Fiji , politicians will become wealthy and spring water will run dry one day.
Too much plastic in that one photo. The plastic faced lady with the plastic bottle collector.
It is highly improbable that Fiji Revenue and Customs taxes ALL Imports from the USA at 63%.
As a practical solution whatever the highly taxed (or tariffed) item is should have its rate reduced or removed and be replaced with other non tariff measures to discourage import of that product. Or the govt to accept foregoing tariff revenue on this or whatever small cluster of highly taxed items these may be.
This would be grounds to seek a lowering of the USA tariff threshold downwards from 32%.
Note that I have interchanged the terms tax and tariff – call it tax or excise, or duty or tariff, the intent or application is the same…a multi labelled charge by govt on imports into the country.
Those in actual exports of commodities will know that generally there is very little or no possibility for the local exporter/ manufacturer/ farmer to absorb the equivalent of a 32% tariff – by reducing the cost to the overseas buyer by such an amount!! You could be exporting at a loss or at best with no profit. May as well not sell overseas if the exporter is asked to “absorb” the tariff the importer in USA would pay to their govt. Eg A dalo farmer / exporter selling their product to the USA importer for say $9 which would attract a tariff in the USA on the Dalo of just over $3. For the dalo exporter to absorb the tariff of $3 they would have to reduce their price to the USA buyer from $9 less $3 to $6. The dalo farmer may as well eat the dalo at home if he/she gets $6 or sell it in Suva market for $7.50.
These are basic straight line numbers calculation with a margin of error but the message is in there.No offence to any academic or anyone not in the front line battlefield of running a business that has to sell and sell / export at a sustainable profit – absorbing a tariff of 32% or a significant shared portion of it, is not like a sponge on the kitchen sink that soaks up water from the bench top.
Fiji Water will be fine. They already engage in transfer pricing on their exports from Fiji, (sell bottled water they import from Fiji at a low cost to their American subsidiary and then hike up the price at retail in the US) which will cushion impact of the tariff. If they are really greedy then they will pass on that extra cost to consumers in the US.
And they can also lower the export price by 32%, wiping out the tariff, because they are just selling to themselves at the US end.
Here we go:
<> DPM and Finance Minister Biman Prasad – he should know as the responsible minister.
Source- Rashika Kumar Fiji Village 3 April 2025 Quoting the DPM and Finance Minister.
The remaining 4% of imports from USA would attract between 5% and 32% duty/Tax/Tarriff. 32 is the highest rate in the Customs code book of Rates applicable on Imports. That any custom agent should know and anyone who looks it up online. But also confirmed by the minister.
So it’s worth Fiji authorities pursing this obvious error on the part of the USA administration in determining the 63% tax Fiji imposes on US products and the commensurate reprisal from Trump. But I suspect there are other matters afflicting much larger economies that are on the list of pressing issues at the White House.
While we Fijians deal with the antics of the inhabitants of the so called “August House of Parliament” and those who are globetrotting overseas.
Below quote from Finance Minister Prasad from my earlier post was not uploaded/ somehow WordPress missed it:
The imposition of a 32 percent across the board tariff on Fijian exports into the US is quite disproportionate and unfair, and 96 percent of what the United States exports to Fiji attracts either zero duty or just 5 percent.
According to the charts shared by Trump and the White House, Fiji charges the US 63 percent tariffs – including currency manipulation and trade barriers.
This 63 percent tariff claim is incorrect as Fiji does not have that level of tariff for any goods or country.
I suspect Trump lumps in VAT, duty, Tariff and any other taxes into that 63%. He is reported to have made his trade deficit calculation for each country based on lumping in a range of tax types. Of course his calculation wouldn’t allow for the culmination of a range of taxes of the opposing countries’ exports, as that would be too logical for him.
Richard ‘I have the means’ Naidu and Munro Leys would have made a windfall from the Fiji Water tax exemption facilitated through Baiman, with support from Rabuka, who was played for like a village idiot by Richard and Baiman, into selling the rights of the landowners. These NFP stalwarts would have set up the visit to the Resnicks. Rabuka was dazzled and quickly agreed to the tax exemption. It was a set up right from the beginning, and Rabuka fell for it like the fool that he is.
Since Fiji Water is already on a tax holiday by Rabuka, Bimaan and Richard, will the coalition look at giving them subsidies on top of the tax holiday to make them keep taking water to cover their tariff revenue losses?