After the first Trump administration imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum in the EU in 2018, when Britain was still a member, Brussels retaliated with tariffs on everything from Harley Davidson motorcycles to Levi jeans to bourbon.

But Duncan Edwards, chief executive of transatlantic business group BritishAmerican Business, said firms on both sides of the Atlantic feared retaliation. “I think even if one side imposes a tariff, the other side shouldn’t do that,” he said. Retaliation would punish British consumers by “making everything more expensive than it normally is”.

However, Aline Doussin, partner at law firm Hogan Lovells and head of its international trade team in London, said Trump’s moves would be “immediately felt by UK exporters”. “The UK government, in coordination with UK stakeholders, must prepare for all possible scenarios.”

Doussin said there is currently “no definitive plan” he has heard from the government for how companies and the public will respond. But he added that retaliation from Britain could make matters worse.

“We did see some trade growth in the context of the previous (Trump) administration,” he added, cautioning that “the market recognizes that for the most part everyone loses in the escalating tariff increases.”