Tariff backlash a big worry for Irish businesses

The response of other trade blocs to America’s move will hurt, writes John Whelan.

US president, Donald Trump, stunned the world by slapping steep trade tariffs on foreign steel and aluminium, drawing protests across the globe, amid fears of an international trade war.

Continuing the sharp departure from a decades-long drive by the US for more open, less-regulated trade, he said that America had been “ravaged by aggressive foreign-trade practices”.