The tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump target not only economic superpowers but also financial minnows. A White House list notes some territories with no economy, and no people, at all.
That is the exact case of the uninhabited Heard Island and McDonald Islands, an Australian territory in the southern Indian Ocean that was hit with a 10% tariff.
Another Australian territory targeted by tariffs is the Cocos Islands. The territory of 600 people sends 32% of its exports – ships – to the US. They now face a 10% tariff.
The Norwegian island of Jan Mayen faces 10% tariffs. But no one lives there permanently and it has an economy of zero.
Tokelau, a territory of New Zealand in the South Pacific Ocean, has a population of about 1,600. It has an economy of about $8 million and exports of around $100,000, the CIA says. It too faces 10% tariffs.
One enclave hit hard by Trump’s tariffs is Saint Pierre and Miquelon, a French territory of islands near the Canadian province of Newfoundland. Its exports – “processed crustaceans, shellfish,” according to the CIA World Factbook – are now subject to a whopping US tariff of 50%, way more than France faces (20%) as part of the European Union.
The Marshall Islands in the North Pacific is a key American military installation. Washington is responsible for the defense of the islands under a Compact of Free Association. The CIA says it has exports of about $130 million a year, though the US is not listed as a top destination. Those now face 10% tariffs if coming to the US.
