Trump has fired his first tariff salvo at China. Are Japan and South Korea next?

Tariffs on imports from Japan and South Korea may be next on the agenda for US President Donald Trump as he looks to punish other nations with trade surpluses following a hike in Chinese duties, analysts said – though higher US tariffs on those countries could strengthen intra-Asian trade and help Chinese exporters.

Trump would raise tariffs on the two East Asian countries to promote production in the United States and pressure both to increase their US investments, the observers said.

Speculation over such a move has gathered steam after Trump announced a universal 25 per cent tariff on steel and aluminium imports.

“The trade war is only just beginning, and Northeast Asia’s developed economies may soon find themselves caught in the crossfire,” Moody’s Analytics said in a report on February 5.

British multinational bank Barclays said in a Monday research note that South Korea in particular imposes “much higher tariffs on US exports in their direction than the US does on imports from them,” which would make Seoul a high-value target for Trump.

“Trump had made similar comments on the campaign trail during his run for a second term as US president,” Barclays said, adding the US may announce “reciprocal tariffs” as early as this week.