Trump attempting to be an ‘emperor,’ Chile President Boric says

Chile’s leftist President Gabriel Boric slammed Donald Trump as a pretend emperor on Wednesday, just hours ahead of the US head of state’s expected announcement on trade tariffs.

Speaking on official visit in India, Boric said that at Trump’s inauguration, billionaires such as Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk were “paying homage to someone who seems to pretend to be a new emperor.”

Boric also condemned trade barriers that are imposed “unilaterally, without considering mutually agreed rules” and which “leave the principles that govern international trade by the wayside.” 

“We’re going to have announcements that will generate who knows what kind of conditions for some countries,” the former student protester said.

Trump is due to reveal his tariff plans this afternoon in the White House Rose Garden just as US markets close

Several proposals are said to be under consideration, including a tiered system with a set of flat rates for countries, as well as a more customised reciprocal plan. Meanwhile, US trade barriers on copper — which is Chile’s top export — could be coming within several weeks, months earlier than the original deadline for a decision.