TRADE, TARIFFS AND TRUMP

The American President's taxes threaten to upend global economic order, could tilt the international trading system in China's favour

- ALAN RAPPEPORT

U.S. President Donald Trump's move this weekend to slap sweeping tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China is threatening to fracture the global trading system and a world economic order that once revolved around a US economy that prized open investment and free markets.

The speed and scope of the import duties that Trump unveiled in executive orders on Saturday prompted widespread criticism from many lawmakers, economists and business groups, who assailed the actions as economic malpractice.

They warned that the tariffs, which were levied in response to Trump's concerns about fentanyl smuggling and illegal immigration, could inflame inflation, cripple American industries and make China an even more powerful global trade hub.

Trump on Sunday defended the tariffs while acknowledging that there could be some negative consequences.

"Will there be some pain? Yes, maybe (and maybe not!)," he wrote on social media.

The executive orders mean that on Tuesday at 12:01 am (US time), all goods imported from Canada and Mexico will be subject to a 25 per cent tariff, except Canadian energy products, which will face a 10 per cent tariff. All Chinese goods will also face a 10 per cent tariff.

Canada and Mexico have vowed to retaliate swiftly with tariffs of their own, and China said it would pursue unspecified "countermeasures" to safeguard its interests.

Speaking on NewsNation on Sunday, Trump's senior trade adviser, Peter Navarro, said it was unlikely that the tariffs would be stopped at the last minute.

"The magnitude of this particular problem is huge," Navarro said, pointing to drugs entering the United States and killing Americans. "It's time to stop the carnage."

Although Trump's tariffs were clearly telegraphed for months, they were broader than many analysts expected.