"Deeply regrettable" is how Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has described US President Donald Trump's latest tariff threat - a 25% levy on Japanese goods. Tokyo, a long-time US ally, has been trying hard to avoid exactly this.

President Trump’s moves have shaken the global trade order established in the 1940s. President Trump’s threat for a 50% tariff on Brazilian imports expanded his use of punitive duties over matters that have nothing to do with trade, breaking with more than a half-century of global economic precedent.

President Trump’s ever-swerving tariff regime has taken more sharp turns this week.On July 7, his administration pushed back some of its most punishing duties by three more weeks to August, following a 90-day delay.