London
\n \u00a0\u2014\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n Shortly after beginning his second term in January, US President Donald Trump launched a chaotic trade war, raising tariffs<\/a> on scores of countries, then changing some and agreeing to a number of tentative trade deals.\n <\/p>\n \n The average US import tax is now at its highest level since the 1930s<\/a>, and there are signs<\/a> the steeper tariffs are feeding through to higher prices<\/a> for Americans.\n <\/p>\n \n But they are also inflicting pain beyond US borders. Here are examples from around the world.\n <\/p>\n Switzerland, Japan and Mexico take a hit<\/p>\n \n The Swiss economy shrank in the third quarter at the sharpest rate since the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. The government attributed<\/a> the contraction largely to a plunge in output from the chemical and pharmaceutical industry, noting recent volatility in foreign trade linked to new US tariffs<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n Over in Asia, Japan\u2019s economy also contracted<\/a> in the third quarter. Drops in exports<\/a> and private residential investment were the biggest drivers.\n <\/p>\n \n And closer to the United States, Mexico\u2019s economy also shrank<\/a> in the third quarter. Economists blamed the poor performance partly on Trump\u2019s erratic trade policy, which dampened business confidence and investment.\n <\/p>\n Canada\u2019s manufacturers cut thousands of jobs<\/p>\n \n The Canadian manufacturing sector has shed 36,500 jobs since the start of the year and now has the smallest workforce since September 2021, when the sector was still reeling from the pandemic, according to the official Survey of Employment, Payrolls and Hours.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cManufacturing has been among the hardest hit by US tariff actions,\u201d Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters, an industry association, said<\/a> in September, describing the sector as a key driver of exports.\n <\/p>\n Brazil\u2019s coffee exports to its main market fall sharply<\/p>\n \n Between August and mid-November<\/a>, Brazil\u2019s coffee exports to the United States were subject to a hefty 50% tariff<\/a>. That tariff made it \u201cpractically impossible to export to that market,\u201d M\u00e1rcio Ferreira, president of exporter group Cecaf\u00e9 or the Brazilian Coffee Exporters Council, said<\/a> in October.\n <\/p>\n