Palm Beach | Tariffs in the United States date back to 1789, when Alexander Hamilton saw them as a solution to two crises facing the newborn republic: a desperate need to raise revenue and a desire to industrialise a nation that seemed dangerously dependent on England.

But in modern times, they have almost always been a negotiating tool – economic coercion in the service of diplomacy, a cudgel to force other nations to the table. What makes President Donald Trump’s move against Mexico, Canada and China different is that he seems uninterested in pursuing deals.