The data I found says in 2023 the US exported $53M to Iran and Imported $869K from Iran.
That is a trade deficit of $52,1. 52.1/0.869 = @60 Divide by 2 should give a 30% tariff,

Some of the justifications that are being put forwards for this 'trade ratio deficit = tariff' are quite strange.

I can only assume that this won't continue indefinitely because... it's just too nonsensical to stand. But in the meantime, why?

Why Iran as a target, not so much of tariffs, but of sanctions and threats?

Iran was one of the original leaders to attack the US dollar reserve and attempt to side-step and make it obsolete, aiming to set up a new world financial order axis with Russia, etc.
Knowing Trump's... erm, ...elephant-memory-like nature, not easily forgiven among the 'Project 2025' agenda momentum.

The crushing of Iran's economy has begun.

Of course, as the Economist points out , this approach is economic illteracy .................... The Falkland's sells the US $27 mm of fish and buys... bugger all - mainly Microsoft software etc. So they have a 42% tariff. Weird.

The illiteracy is obvious but the White House’s apparently wrong answer to their own sum raises a question. Presumably the data was fed into a spreadsheet and the answers were regurgitated ready for the infamous table in the Rose Garden, so the answer for Iran must have been deliberately doctored. They did the similar to Russia, North Korea, Belorussia and Cuba (0 tariff) Why?

Presumably because the numbers show that the US is still trading with that fine bunch of countries even though they shouldn't?????:suspect:

Agreed, but shouldn't that be innumeracy?

Numerically incontinent?

Because the Trump way of doing things with the media is basically nonstop trolling and this will give them an ‘Axis of Evil / Agent Krasnov’ spin to run with?

Maybe we’ll have another Nuclear Button Dicksize War Of Words shortly…

Who really knows with these guys, they’re all over the place.

Gee, for the last three years Russian gas has been sold in Europe, billions of Euros worth, and you get upset about who someone does business with? :rolleyes:

No I'm not upset - we all know that tons of stuff goes backwards and forwards - especially via Dubai and India. The question by Ninthace was why did the US govt not apply serious tariffs to the empires of evil but only to their friends. any suggestions?

I am not Donald J Trump, so don't ask me. You are free to ask him.
None of this tariff war makes any sense to me beyond shaking things up on purpose to see who will make a new deal and who won't.
I saw a news tidbit that van der Leyden was offering a 10% reciprocal deal. No idea if that will work or not, but Marc Cuban has commented favorably upon it. (FWIW).

Any economic deal made with Iran is lost in the noise (due to orders of magnitude) until normal relations are restored with them.
The Ayatollahs flat out refuse to restore normal relations with us. They refuse direct talks. That may change some day, but it's been that way for a long time.

Any deal made with China will have big impacts on both sides of the Pacific.
What I don't like is the prospect for no deal being made with China.

I get the impression that the animosity between the US and Iran is pretty mutual. Both portray the other as the epitome of evil.

You have not been paying attention. Attempts at normalization were part of W.J. Clinton's overall policy arc in the Middle East.
That didn't work out.
There were some attempts at bridge building (through the Swiss mostly, and baby steps) while we were engaged in Afghanistan during the first few years, but once Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (in Tehran) and a few of our chicken hawks (in Washington) got their hands on things, those also died on the vine.
President Obama's support of the 2015 nuclear deal (a multi lateral move) was an act of good faith, and a part of an overarching attempt at getting back to something close to normal relations.
That still didn't get us to where direct talks, or re establishing direct talks was the norm. (And IIRC, as VP Biden was against it).

The ayatollahs have dug in their heels since 1979.

Of late, since General Soleimani got whacked (during trump's first term) and Biden didn't try to resurrect the nuclear deal, during his term, I don't see what offer has been made to them to try again.
Trump is currently making his offer of direct talks, but since he is at the same time threatening to drop a load of bombs on them, I can see how they are not taking it well.

I was not talking of the past but the present. Your final sentence suggests we are in agreement.

Talks going on in Doha as I write.
6 B2's in Diago Garcia, along with numerous support.
if the US cant make Iran see sense and do nothing about it, the Israelis will.
G Doublya, said "we will not allow the worst countries to have the most dangerious weapons"
Than God, DJT, is of the same opinion.

Not intending to go off topic, RichardJones, but
"we will not allow the worst countries to have the most dangerious weapons"
has already failed, with North Korea as a prime example.

Glad to hear that there are discussions ongoing in Doha. Whether they are "direct" or "indirect" is unclear as I read through this coverage from CNN.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world...d=BingNewsSerp

Ok, thanks for the information.
Kim could quite easily be slapped down. Iran? Tricky.

How much trouble has the West got into thinking these pipsqueak little countries can be quite easily slapped down?