The Bangladeshi government is preparing to formally appeal to the United States Trade Representative (USTR) for a rollback of what it calls an “irrational” 37% tariff recently imposed on its exports, a senior official confirmed Friday.

The move follows an emergency inter-ministerial meeting in Dhaka, held hours after US President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff announcement. Commerce Secretary Mahbubur Rahman said Bangladesh is compiling evidence to challenge the basis of the reciprocal duties.

“Our data shows American goods entering Bangladesh face an average tariff of just 2.37%,” Rahman remarked. “Many US commodities, including cotton and soybean, enjoy near-zero duties.”

The government is also set to meet with US embassy officials in Dhaka on Sunday to raise concerns. Officials are reviewing President Trump’s claim that Bangladesh imposes a 74% tariff on American products—a figure the National Board of Revenue says may reflect only the highest-duty items.

Commerce officials argue that US calculations ignore significant financial flows such as payments for digital services, licensing, and insurance fees to American companies.

Rahman warned of inflationary consequences from the tariffs and stressed that American consumers would ultimately pay higher prices. However, he expressed optimism following Trump’s stated willingness to engage in bilateral talks.

“We intend to pursue this opening vigorously,” he said. “A more rational adjustment can be achieved through dialogue.”

Top trade officials, economists, and revenue authorities attended the emergency session at the Secretariat.