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BBC NEWS  -  Jemma Crew   Jennifer Clarke

What Trump has done and why it matters

US President Donald Trump announced sweeping tariffs on goods from countries across the world, on what he called "Liberation Day".

He says the move will make America wealthy again, but economists warn that prices could rise for Americans and fears of a global trade war have grown.

What are tariffs and which countries is Trump targeting?

Tariffs are taxes on goods from other countries. Companies bringing the goods into the country pay the amount, typically a percentage of the goods' value, to the government.

Trump announced a 10% "baseline" tariff on imports to the US. This is what the UK will face.

But 60 countries will be hit with higher rates of up to 50%, including Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bangladesh. Countries in the European Union face a 20% tariff. The tariffs are set to take effect in days.

Trump also confirmed previously announced tariffs on specific goods, including 25% on steel, aluminium and foreign-made cars.

Why is Trump so keen to use tariffs?

Since the 1980s, Trump has strongly argued that the taxes can boost the US economy.

He believes they will encourage US consumers to buy more American goods, and increase the amount of tax raised. Trump also wants to reduce the gap between the value of US goods imported and exported.

The White House said other countries were taking advantage of the US by imposing their own high tariffs and other trade barriers. "For decades, our country has been looted, pillaged, raped and plundered by nations near and far, both friend and foe alike," the US president said.

However, Trump is taking an enormous risk upon which he is staking his presidency, our North America correspondent Anthony Zurcher writes.

If successful, the move could reshape the global economic order. Trump promises that it will rebuild American manufacturing and make the country more self-reliant.

But it risks alienating allies and economists warn it could raise prices and threaten a global recession.

A messy global trade war looks inevitable, suggests the BBC's economics editor Faisal Islam.

Trump's decision to take tariff revenues to a level beyond those seen during the 1930s will mean huge changes to world trade patterns, he says.

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Follow-up Questions:

1- What consequences might there be for your country if there is a global trade war?

2- What are Trump's main intentions for charging tariffs on goods from foreign countries?

3- What are your country's greatest exports?

4- What imported goods do you buy from the USA?

5- Do you think Trump will succeed in his goal of "Making America Great Again"?