Faisal Islam: This is the biggest change to global trade in 100 years

by | Apr 3, 2025 | Politics

The impact of these tariffs on the world economy will be huge. They can be measured by the lines on a chart of US tariff revenue jumping to levels not seen in a century – beyond those seen during the high protectionism of the 1930s.Or in the overnight stock market falls, especially in Asia.But the true measure of these changes will be significant changes to long-standing global avenues of trade.At its heart this is a universal tariff of 10% on all imports into the US for everyone, coming in on Friday night. On top of that dozens of “worst offenders” will be charged reciprocally for having trade surpluses.The tariffs on Asian nations are truly remarkable. They will break the business models of thousands of companies, factories, and possibly entire nations.Some of the supply chains created by the world’s biggest companies will be broken instantly. The inevitable impact will surely be to push them towards China.Is this just a grand negotiation? Well the US administration appears to be claiming the tariff revenue for planned tax cuts. The scope for quick adjustment seems limited. As one White House official said bluntly: “This is not a negotiation, it’s a national emergency”.The aim of the policy is to get the US trade deficit “back to zero”. This is a total rewiring of the world economy.But shifting factories will take years. Tariffs at this scal …

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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnThe impact of these tariffs on the world economy will be huge. They can be measured by the lines on a chart of US tariff revenue jumping to levels not seen in a century – beyond those seen during the high protectionism of the 1930s.Or in the overnight stock market falls, especially in Asia.But the true measure of these changes will be significant changes to long-standing global avenues of trade.At its heart this is a universal tariff of 10% on all imports into the US for everyone, coming in on Friday night. On top of that dozens of “worst offenders” will be charged reciprocally for having trade surpluses.The tariffs on Asian nations are truly remarkable. They will break the business models of thousands of companies, factories, and possibly entire nations.Some of the supply chains created by the world’s biggest companies will be broken instantly. The inevitable impact will surely be to push them towards China.Is this just a grand negotiation? Well the US administration appears to be claiming the tariff revenue for planned tax cuts. The scope for quick adjustment seems limited. As one White House official said bluntly: “This is not a negotiation, it’s a national emergency”.The aim of the policy is to get the US trade deficit “back to zero”. This is a total rewiring of the world economy.But shifting factories will take years. Tariffs at this scal …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]