Countries around the world are preparing countermeasures to a raft of global tariffs announced by US president Donald Trump this week that are set to come into force from April 5th.
Announced in an address from the White House, the measures will impose a minimum ten percent duty on all imports to the US. However, many territories, including the EU and China, will see much higher duties enacted as of April 9th.
Among the headline figures are additional levies of 34 percent on China - taking total import taxes to 54 percent - 20 percent on the EU, 24 percent on Japan and 46 percent on Vietnam.
Mr Trump has described these as 'reciprocal' tariffs in response to perceived trade injustices against the US. However, commentators have indicated the figures have been calculated based on countries' trade deficits and imports to the US rather than any specific trade barriers.
European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen described the tariffs as a "major blow to the world economy" and vowed the EU would take a unified approach in response, while French president Emmanuel Macron called for European countries to suspend investment in the US.
China also warned of retaliation. Its Commerce Ministry said there are no winners in trade wars and added the country would take “necessary measures to resolutely safeguard legitimate rights and interests”.
Some other nations, including the UK, Japan, South Korea and India, indicated they would hold off on immediate responses while they try to seek concessions.
Director general of the World Trade Organization Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala also warned that the measures could lead to global goods trade contracting by up to one percent this year.
"I'm deeply concerned about this decline and the potential for escalation into a tariff war with a cycle of retaliatory measures that lead to further declines in trade," she added.
Global stock markets also reacted badly to the news, with more than $2 trillion in value wiped out. The US Nasdaq index dropped over five percent on the day following the announcements, while Japan's Nikkei is set for its biggest weekly fall in five years.
Despite the turbulence, Mr Trump has shown no signs of compromise, saying the plan is going "very well".