The moment is fast arriving when Caribbean Governments and business will have to consider the consequences of the tariff wars and sanctions that Washington is now pursuing.
Far from reducing its ‘America First’ rhetoric and seeking compromise, the Trump Administration has become committed to weaponising its trade policy to achieve its broader political objectives. If sustained, this will reshape global markets, making an equitable rules-based global trading system no longer possible.
So serious has the matter become that the Chinese government recently issued a white paper on its trade dispute with the US. The document, which has much broader relevance, sets out clearly how since President Trump took office in 2017 the US administration has threatened its major trading partners with new tariffs and introduced measures, provoking frequent economic and trade friction.