U.S. President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs announced on Wednesday targeted more than a hundred trading nations with a minimum baseline rate of 10% and much higher for certain countries.

The list of trading partners was expansive. So expansive, in fact, that they included several remote island groups around the world, including one sub-Antarctic territory devoid of humans and inhabited mainly by penguins.

The U.S. slapped a 10% reciprocal tariff on Heard Island and McDonald Islands. Located nearly 2,500 miles southwest of mainland Australia and managed by the Australian Antarctic Division, the island group is one of the world's least disturbed areas by humans. See the picture below:

As per the U.S. Census Bureau, there was essentially zero trade with the island group in 2024.   

Here are a few other remote places targeted by the U.S.:

• Norfolk Island: An Australian territory located to the east of the country's mainland and to the north of New Zealand. It got hit with a 29% reciprocal tariff rate, compared to just 10% for the Australian mainland. U.S. Census Bureau data showed imports of $200K from Norfolk Island in 2024 and exports of $100K, for a trade deficit of $100K.       
• Reunion Island: An overseas territory of France located to the east of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. It got slapped with a hefty 37% reciprocal tariff rate. U.S. Census Bureau data showed imports of $44.1M from Reunion Island in 2024 and exports of $11.9M, for a trade deficit of $32.2M.
• Svalbard and Jan Mayen: Both are territories of Norway. Svalbard is an archipelago situated in the Arctic Ocean, while Jan Mayen is a volcanic island southwest from there. They got hit with a 10% reciprocal tariff rate. U.S. Census Bureau data showed no imports from the islands in 2024 and exports of $400K, for a trade surplus of $400K. 

U.S. stocks (SP500)(COMP:IND)(DJI) cratered on Thursday as sentiment was hammered across the globe by Trump's tariffs.  

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