Trump said during his campaign that tariffs were the answer to countless problems, including containing China and preventing illegal immigration.

“Tariff is the most beautiful world of the dictionary,” he said. This is clearly a weapon he plans to use.

Although most of this rhetoric and actions target China, it does not end there.

Some jurisdictions, such as the EU, are already drawing up lists of pre-emptive retaliatory actions against the US after ministers failed to take Trump’s subsequent tariff threats seriously enough.

G7 finance ministers told me last week that they would try to remind America under Trump of the need for allies in the world economy because “the goal is not to start a trade war.”

However, if “very strong and broad authority is used” Europe will quickly consider its response.

In the past, the EU has imposed tariffs on iconic American products such as Harley Davidson motorcycles, bourbon whiskey and Levi’s jeans in response to US tariffs on steel and aluminium.

A senior Eurozone central banker told me that US tariffs alone “do not lead to inflation in Europe, but it depends on what the European response is.”

Last month the IMF told me that a major trade war would affect the world economy by 7%, or the combined size of the French and German economies.

There are huge questions for the UK government about exactly where a post-Brexit UK should position itself in a plausible, if not certain, transatlantic trade war.

The UK’s course so far has been to move closer to the EU, including on food and agricultural standards. This would make a close trade deal with the US very difficult.

The Biden administration was uninterested in such a deal. Trump’s still highly influential top trade negotiator, Bob Lighthizer, even said the assumption that Britain would stay close to the EU to help its own businesses was holding him back from reaching a deal.

“They are a much bigger trading partner to you than we are,” he told me in an interview.

The UK may try to remain neutral, but will struggle to avoid the crossfire, particularly in trade in pharmaceuticals and auto products.

The UK government’s rhetoric suggests it may seek to be a peacemaker in global trade wars, but is anyone listening?

Britain could choose a side by seeking exemptions from more general Trump tariffs.

Diplomats were encouraged by more pragmatic economic advisers telling the president-elect that friendly allies could reach a better deal.

Or would the world benefit more if the UK joined forces with the EU to prevent the imposition of such trade tariffs?

How about setting an example for the rest of the world outside the USA?

If the world’s largest economy resorts to mass protectionism, it will be difficult to persuade many smaller economies not to do the same.

These are all very up for grabs. Trump’s warnings can be taken at face value. Nothing is certain, but very serious trade wars could start this way.