"The trade barriers created by major economies could jeopardize the global economic recovery," said Roberto Azevêdo, Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) pointing out that "this escalation is a serious threat to growth and recovery in all countries, and we already started to see that this was reflected in some expectations of economic activity."
According to the World Trade Organization, the G-20 countries imposed 39 new trade restrictions between mid-October and mid-May of this year, or twice the restrictions imposed in the previous similar period, affecting trade In iron, steel, plastic products and vehicles.
"A significant increase in new trade restrictive measures between the G-20 economies should be a real concern for the international community," he said, adding that "further restrictions were applied in the weeks following the end of the review period."
US President Donald Trump launched a series of tariffs to combat unfair trade by allies and trade rivals alike. The European Union has responded to US tariffs on its imports of jeans, peanut butter and other US products, while China has threatened to reciprocate fees that Trump announced would be in force from the early hours of Friday.