John Denton, head of the International Chamber of Commerce, said that “the biggest losers are Africa and Southeast Asia”.
Countries such as Madagascar, Lesotho, Cambodia and Laos face tariffs above 47 per cent.
There were also countries that were unaffected by the tariffs, such as Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Belarus and Venezuela.
US officials said that is because sanctions and other existing barriers mean the country has so little trade with those places that deficits are minimal.
White House officials insist the new tariffs are more about closing trade deficits, stimulating US manufacturing and generating government revenue than eventually negotiating new trading deals.
Trump’s administration has said the president is always ready to make deals – a sign the new tariffs may prove to be more of a bargaining chip than a permanent policy.
Flying to Florida aboard Air Force One on Thursday, Trump said of making possible deals to reduce tariffs imposed around the world going forward: “Every country’s called us.”
“We put ourselves in the driver’s seat,” he said. “If we would have asked some of these countries, or most of these countries, to do us a favour, they would have said, No. Now they’ll do anything for us.”
