President Donald Trump has slapped a 39% tariff on most Swiss-made goods, one of the steepest duties imposed by the United States in recent years. The surcharge, due to take effect on 7 August, follows months of stalled negotiations over a bilateral trade accord. Washington says the measure targets a widening goods-trade gap with Switzerland, which reached roughly $38.5 billion after a sudden jump in Swiss gold bullion exports. Switzerland is the world’s largest gold-refining hub, yet bullion — along with pharmaceutical products — is excluded from the new tariff, leaving other sectors to bear the brunt. Luxury watchmakers are among the most exposed. The United States is the biggest market for Swiss timepieces, accounting for 16.8% of exports worth about 4.4 billion Swiss francs ($5.4 billion) last year. Swatch Group, whose U.S. sales make up 18% of revenue, has front-loaded shipments and raised prices; its shares slid nearly 5% when the levy was announced. Capital Economics warns the duty could trim Swiss GDP by 0.6% if it remains in force. The government held an emergency cabinet meeting, signalled readiness to sweeten its offer to Washington and readied short-time work programmes to cushion expected job losses. Industry groups argue the penalty may simply raise consumer prices in the U.S. without addressing the underlying gold-driven imbalance. Swatch Chief Executive Nick Hayek urged Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter to travel to Washington quickly, saying, “What counts on the U.S. side is what Mr. Trump is saying.”