United States President Donald Trump imposed a 10% tariff on goods from remote Heard Island and McDonald Islands near Antarctica. These islands, an Australian external territory, are famous for glaciers and penguins. Accessible by a two-week boat trip from Perth, they are among the most isolated places on earth.
Despite being uninhabited for nearly a decade, Heard and McDonald Islands were included in a list by the White House for new trade tariffs. Australian PM Anthony Albanese expressed concern, saying, “Nowhere on earth is safe.” These islands are among the external territories of Australia mentioned separately in the tariff list.
These territories are part of Australia but lack self-governance; they have a special tie to the federal government. Other territories are Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Christmas Island, and Norfolk Island. Norfolk Island faced a 29% tariff, 19% higher than the rest of Australia.
Norfolk Island supposedly exported $655,000 worth of goods to the US in 2023, as per data from the Observatory of Economic Complexity, but island administrator George Plant disputes this, claiming there are no exports to the US and no trade barriers. The island’s population is just 2,188.
Despite their lack of human inhabitants, Heard Island and McDonald Islands support a fishery. In 2022, US imports from the islands totaled $1.4 million (A$2.23 million), mainly machinery and electrical products, fluctuating between $15,000 (A$24,000) and $325,000 (A$518,000) annually in the previous five years. However, the specific goods imported remain unclear.
Sources News From Various Digital Platforms, Websites, Journalists, And Agencies.
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