President Donald Trump’s tariffs are already wreaking economic chaos in the US and abroad.

On Wednesday, he announced a minimum 10 percent tariff on almost all imports, with dozens of countries facing even higher rates.

The stock market plunged in response when trading opened on Thursday, with the S&P 500 down more than 4 percent by the afternoon.

Some countries, including China, have promised retaliatory measures. Other US trading partners, including Japan, are seeking to negotiate with the Trump administration.

But if the tariffs stay in place, US consumers are expected to soon pay more for everything from cars to sneakers to groceries as a result.

Industries from car manufacturing to pharmaceuticals have been scrambling to respond. A producer of the Chrysler Pacifica minivan and Dodge’s electric Charger Daytona has already temporarily closed one of its factories in Canada, just across the border from Detroit. Whirlpool also announced layoffs Thursday of more than 650 American workers in Iowa, citing economic conditions in the US.

Amid the economic uncertainty created by the tariffs, what is clear is that a global trade war may be just beginning. Here are some of your key questions about the tariffs, answered.

What does Trump actually hope to achieve by this?

Trump celebrated April 2, the day that the tariffs were implemented, as “Liberation Day.” That’s because he sees the tariffs as a “declaration of economic........

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