History shows that, with a bit of common sense, trade spats like the steel and aluminium tariffs Donald Trump has announced can be contained. But the question is whether Trump is listening to history.

We have been here before. In March 2002, exactly 16 years ago, the George W. Bush administration imposed penalty tariffs of 8 to 30 per cent on steel imports. It was a transparent tactic to shore up the Republican vote in blue-collar swing states ahead of the mid-term elections.