Yesterday, President Trump signed a new proclamation imposing a 15% import duty on a wide range of goods entering the United States. The action, taken under Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974, is designed to address the country's growing balance-of-payments deficit and takes effect on February 24th.
If you're sourcing brake drums or other heavy-duty truck parts, you're probably wondering: does this change anything for me?
The short answer is no.
Brake Drums Are Already Covered Under Section 232
Heavy-duty brake drums fall under HTS 8708.30.50.20 — brakes and servo-brakes, and parts thereof. This category has been subject to a 25% Section 232 tariff since the original auto parts action took effect in May 2025, and was reinforced when Section 232 expanded to cover medium- and heavy-duty vehicle parts on November 1, 2025.
The new Section 122 proclamation explicitly exempts goods that are already subject to Section 232 actions. That means brake drums, rotors, and other covered brake components are carved out from the additional 15% entirely.
Your brake drum landed cost doesn't change on February 24th.
What This Means If You're Sourcing from Vietnam
For buyers already working with Vietnamese suppliers like TBP Auto, the tariff picture remains straightforward:
- 25% Section 232 duty — applies to brake drums from all countries
- 2.5% standard MFN duty — the normal rate for HTS 8708.30.50.20
- No anti-dumping or countervailing duties from Vietnam
By comparison, Chinese brake drum exporters face anti-dumping duties that can reach over 400%, and Turkish suppliers face their own trade defense measures. Vietnamese-manufactured brake drums carry none of those additional costs.
The new 15% tariff will affect a wide range of other product categories, but heavy-duty brake parts are already accounted for under Section 232. Nothing changes on February 24th.
The Bigger Picture
The trade landscape has shifted dramatically over the past year. Between Section 232 on autos and auto parts, the expansion to heavy-duty trucks, reciprocal tariffs, and now this Section 122 action, importers are dealing with more complexity than ever.
For aftermarket distributors, the calculus is simple: you need suppliers who give you cost certainty. That means manufacturing in a country with clean trade status — no anti-dumping exposure, no countervailing duties, and no risk of retroactive penalties.
That's been our position at TBP Auto from day one. We manufacture brake drums in Vietnam specifically because it offers our US customers the most stable and competitive landed cost in the market.
Need More Detail?
If you have questions about how these tariffs affect your specific product lines, or you want to compare landed costs from your current supplier against what we can offer, reach out to us directly. We're happy to walk through the numbers.
Contact us at sales@tbpauto.com
TBP Auto is a brake drum manufacturer based in Vietnam, supplying the US heavy-duty commercial vehicle aftermarket. We produce brake drums for Class 6–8 trucks and trailers at our foundry in Vietnam.
