Imagine you run a country called Nation A. You're worried because your local industries like steel, aluminum, and copper aren’t able to compete with cheaper imports from other countries like Nation B and Nation C. To solve this, you decide to put tariffs on imported goods. A tariff is simply a tax your government places on goods coming into your country from abroad. Imagine it as an entry fee whenever someone wants to bring goods into Nation A; they must pay extra money to your government. For example, if Nation B sells steel to you for ₹100 and you impose a 25% tariff, Nation B's steel will now cost ₹125 in Nation A. Your goal is simple: protect your domestic businesses by making foreign products more expensive so citizens prefer local goods. In real life, former US President Donald Trump did exactly this. He imposed a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports, aiming to protect American businesses and jobs from foreign competition. He also threatened to impose similar tariffs on copper. The reason behind this move was that the US was experiencing something called a trade deficit with Europe and other nations. A trade deficit means your country buys more from other countries (imports) than it sells to them (exports). For example, in 2024, the US had a $213 billion trade deficit with the European Union. That means the US bought $213 billion more in goods from Europe than it sold back to them. Trump believed tariffs would balance trade by making imports more expensive and encouraging Americans to buy American-made products. But there's always another side to this story. When Nation A imposes tariffs, Nation B might retaliate by imposing its own tariffs on Nation A's products. That's exactly what happened in real life. Europe, Canada, and China responded to Trump’s tariffs by adding tariffs to American products like agricultural goods, cars, and whiskey. This created what's called a trade war. A trade war occurs when countries keep raising tariffs against each other in retaliation. Instead of solving problems, this escalation often ends up hurting businesses, consumers, and economies on both sides. Here's where it gets interesting. Trump’s tariffs aimed to protect the American market, but an unexpected event showed the hidden dangers of tariffs: the US faced a sudden shortage of eggs due to a major bird flu outbreak. Now the US urgently needed to import eggs from Europe. But wait, earlier tariff decisions complicated this. Despite wanting to protect their economy from European goods earlier, the US found itself ironically reliant on European egg imports. This highlights how interconnected the global economy is. Tariffs meant to protect sometimes lead to vulnerability, especially when unexpected situations arise. Another complication arose around copper tariffs. Copper is traded globally on platforms like the London Metal Exchange (LME) and the Commodity Exchange (Comex). These are international marketplaces where commodities, basic raw materials like metals, oil, and agricultural products, are traded. Prices here influence global costs for everyone who buys these materials. When the US threatened tariffs on copper, the global copper price surged over $10,000 per tonne. American businesses scrambled to secure copper before tariffs raised the prices further. As a result, copper became more expensive for American companies, driving up costs for products ranging from electrical wiring to electronic gadgets. Ultimately, ordinary consumers pay more. Companies usually pass on the increased costs due to tariffs to their customers by raising prices of their final products. In the story of tariffs, the long-term effects can be quite different from the intended goals. Tariffs might temporarily protect domestic industries, but global interdependence means no country can entirely isolate itself. Countries depend on each other, and disruption in trade can harm everyone involved. Retaliation from trading partners can escalate into harmful trade wars. Commodity prices become volatile, making essential raw materials expensive for local businesses. Consumers often bear the cost as increased prices trickle down to everyday people, making goods more expensive.