Long-threatened tariffs from U.S. President Donald Trump have plunged the country into a trade war abroad — all while on-again, off-again new levies continue to escalate uncertainty.

Investors have been rushing to gold — a safe-haven asset — this year to hedge against risk from US President Donald Trump's trade war.

President Trump said he would impose a 200% tariff on U.S. imports of wine, Champagne and other alcoholic beverages from the bloc.

U.S. President Donald Trump has made numerous tariff threats since returning to office on January 20, ranging from a universal duty on imports to targeted tariffs on specific sectors or countries, in a bid to get others to meet his policy demands.

Worsening relations with three of the United States’ biggest trading partners dominated a Senate hearing for the would-be U.S. ambassadors to Canada, Mexico and Japan.

President Donald Trump on Thursday threatened to impose a massive tariff on European alcohol in response to the European Union’s retaliation against his steel and aluminum tariffs – a tit-for-tat escalation of a trade war that could easily get out of hand.

A full-scale global trade war would hurt the United States in particular and could re-energise Europe's push towards unity, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde said on Friday.

The President of the United States—the man with the nuclear codes—is angry and emotional and acting, frankly, erratically. And that is not my judgment. It is basically what his own Cabinet defenders are saying,

European wine, Kentucky bourbon, French Champagne, and other alcoholic beverages could be subject to tariffs if EU and US tariffs materialize.