The end of the 'Age of Globalization': World media reacts as Trump imposes sweeping tariffs
President Donald Trump departs after signing an executive order at an event to announce new tariffs in the Rose Garden of the White House, Wednesday, April 2, 2025, in Washington. Picture: AP Photo/Evan Vucci
US president Donald Trump continues to implement "reciprocal tariffs" on countries across the globe, and print media the world over is having its say in boldface.
Mr Trump recently imposed 20% tariffs on all imports from the EU as part of a raft of measures that will hit Irish exports.
Ireland isn't the only country reeling from these sweeping tariffs, with major trade partners and struggling countries alike already preparing for the worst.
Mr Trump's new regime threatens to begin a global trade war, with claiming that this "marks the biggest upheaval of global trade norms since the Second World War."
The front page of the shows Trump holding up a chart that lists the tariffs for countries and regions around the world with the headline 'Trump hits EU with 20% tariffs'.
Page 2 reads 'EU leaders split on how to respond to tariffs', echoing the words of Taoiseach Micheál Martin, who has warned that countries will be divided on how to retaliate against such a monumental upheaval in trade relations.
A page 10 opinion piece also claims: "Retaliation may not be straightforward, and we may need to be mindful that other EU countries’ aims may not coincide with our own.
"Our sensitivity about the pharma sector and US multinationals here may not be matched by other European nations seeking to punish American business, while the noises from Italy are worrying for a different reason."
The front page reads 'Trump upends decades of US trade policy with sweeping global tariffs'
The says 'Trump ignites historic trade war', while the paraphrases the words of the Taoiseach, worryingly exclaiming, "We will never be back to normal."
Trump announced 10% tariffs on British goods with the Pippa Crerar saying "Downing Street will be relieved to have escaped the higher rate, with Keir Starmer's more conciliatory approach to the Trump administration appearing to pay off".
While Britain looks to have got off lightly, writes "The move will hit all of the UK's £60bn worth of annual exports to the US, with economists warning that the tariffs could completely wipe out growth in the UK economy next year".
“Trump unleashes tariffs” is the headline in the . The story's intro reads that the US president has called his new regime a “declaration of economic independence”.
headline touches on how Trump is targeting who he calls the 'foreign cheaters'.
Across the pond, US broadsheets have been commenting. A front-page article in the from Ana Swanson and Tony Romm read: "His [Trump's] announcement went far beyond what many economists and analysts had expected."
They continued: "The moves will shatter the global trading system that the United States helped build up since the Second World War..."
A headline in the reads: 'With New Trade Regime, US Aims to Topple the Age Of Globalization'.
The header on the simply and smartly quips: 'World War Fee'.
The cover of the features an image of Trump proudly holding an executive order with three American flags draped dramatically behind him. An article by David J Lynch and Jeff Stein warns that the tariffs "would erect towering impediments to products from dozens of foreign countries, many of them poor nations that embraced exporting as a tool to escape grinding poverty."
French outlet front splash reads 'Guerre Commerciale: Le monde sous le choc', which translates to 'Trade War: The World in Shock'.
The headline on Spanish paper translates to 'Trump detonates trade war' while declares 'Trump unleashes a maelstrom of tariffs against the global order'.
Some papers' headlines almost read as a cry for help. For example, the simply says 'It will harm us'.
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