Trump proposes fresh salvo of tariffs in his war for spoils

It is yet to be seen whether US President Donald Trump's threat of a "reciprocal tax" on goods imported from countries that levy tariffs on US products was just a reiteration of his campaign trail slogans as some observers believe.

For the harm such tariffs would inflict on the world's most important and most active trade ties, it would be better for the proposal to be what some critics assume - more bark than bite.

To this point, no details have been forthcoming, and reportedly nothing formal is in the works, although Trump promised progress "during the week and during the coming months".