US: Protectionist trade risks rising – Nomura

In a surprise announcement, President Trump announced that next week he would impose 25% tariffs on steel and 10% on aluminium, points out the research team at Nomura.

Key Quotes

“Although it remains unclear what products will be covered and which countries might be exempted, this announcement marks a significant escalation of protectionism from the administration and could portend additional trade actions, particularly with respect to the ongoing Section 301 investigation into China’s intellectual property (IP) policies. Moreover, if Trump does sign an official order next week with the numbers he announced today, there is likely to be some retaliation from US trading partners.”