London
CNN
—
When the United States hiked tariffs on most goods entering the country almost a century ago, the consequences were severe: global trade plummeted and US exports collapsed, as other countries retaliated in kind, deepening one of the world’s worst ever economic downturns — the Great Depression.
The tariffs in question, levied under the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, would be dwarfed by the duties that Donald Trump has pledged to impose if he wins a second term in the White House.
Alongside other radical ideas — including mass deportations of undocumented immigrants and interfering with the independence of the Federal Reserve — Trump has said he wants to slap 10-20% tariffs on all goods imported into the United States. That would be sharply up…
