President Donald Trump’s new tariff chart, which he unveiled Wednesday at the Rose Garden, had a mixture of surprising and predictable countries on the list. A high tariff on China? Not so surprising. But among the top 10 countries on his chart, eight are in Asia.

Many close US allies like South Korea and Japan were stunned by the steep rate increases applied to their exports.

Since the announcement, markets in Asia have tumbled. Japan’s chief cabinet secretary has called the tariffs “extremely regrettable.” South Korea’s acting president called an emergency meeting to strategize a response.

As stunned as these US allies were at the steep increase in tariffs levied against them, they weren’t caught totally offguard. Just a few days before Trump’s tariff announcement, Japan, China, and South Korea’s trade ministers met in Seoul for the first time in five years to discuss coordinating a response.

Mike Bird, Wall Street editor at The Economist and a former correspondent based in Asia, talked with Today, Explained’s Noel King how US........

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