The WTO Director General warned about the consequences of US duties on world trade

The imposition of trade duties by US President Donald Trump will have significant implications for the prospects for global trade and economic growth. This was announced on April 3 by the Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.

"I am deeply concerned <...> about the possibility of escalating into a tariff war with a cycle of retaliatory measures that will lead to a further reduction in trade <...>. Trade measures of this scale could potentially lead to a significant redirection of trade," RIA Novosti quoted her as saying.

The WTO Director General noted that the introduction of US duties could lead to a decrease in world trade by 1% in 2025 instead of an increase of 3%. She added that many countries that are members of the WTO have asked the organization's secretariat to help analyze the economic consequences for their countries from the introduction of new tariffs.

Trade Warrior: How new US duties will affect the global economy

Donald Trump announced the introduction of fees for all products supplied to the United States.

On April 2, Trump announced large-scale measures: base tariffs of 10% are being introduced for all products supplied to the United States. For the EU, this figure has been raised to 20%, and for China — to 34%. In his speech, the president called April 2 the day when Americans will become rich again.

Later, experts reported that the volume of imports to the United States from countries where duties were imposed could decrease by at least 10-15% this year.

On April 3, Georgy Ostapkovich, director of the HSE Center for Economic Research and Economic Analysis, said that the introduction of US duties on imported goods could trigger a chain reaction that could lead to a global financial crisis.